Celebrity circus a risky choice for political victory
TEN years ago today, an enthusiastic Nicole Cornes was plucked “out of the blue” by Labor Party strategists to take on a longstanding Liberal MP at the 2007 federal election, writes Lauren Novak.
TEN years ago today, an enthusiastic Nicole Cornes was plucked “out of the blue” by Labor Party strategists to take on a longstanding Liberal MP at the 2007 federal election.
The then 37-year-old mother and wife of football legend Graham Cornes joined the Labor Party the day after she was announced as its star candidate for Boothby.
At the time, the newspaper columnist and law student conceded she was “a little overwhelmed”. History shows she was underprepared and paid for it — with relentless public criticism and failure at the ballot box.
But she’s not alone. The wake of elections past is littered with household names who went the same way.
Remember high-profile rugby league coach Mal Meninga, who spectacularly quit politics almost as soon as his candidacy was announced?
Or former league player Glenn Lazarus, who abandoned the Palmer United Party not long after his election? He stayed on as an independent senator but was not re-elected.
There are exceptions who have had success, such as former Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett, who ended up a minister in a Federal Labor Government, or local TV personality Corey Wingard, who was elected for the Liberals to State Parliament and holds portfolios on the frontbench.
So, as South Australians prepare for a state election less than a year from now, are political operatives still keen on celebrity candidates or do they pose too big a risk?
“Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t,” political analyst Professor Dean Jaensch says.
“If you’re a star candidate who has the ability to handle what election campaigns are — and they’re pretty nasty things at times — then it can work.
“But it can backfire all the time.
“Most of them have walked into problems. They simply emerge from somewhere which is not related to politics and many of them have no understanding or experience of politics.
“The first thing the media does, understandably, is to try and explore what this person’s politics are.”
There are a few recognisable names among those lining up for the March 2018 state poll.
Former Paralympian Matt Cowdrey will contest the coveted seaside seat of Colton for the Liberals, where Labor stalwart Paul Caica is retiring. Jayne Stinson, a former Labor staffer and reporter for Channels 7 and 10, is running in the newly renamed seat of Badcoe, against Liberal candidate and Unley Mayor Lachlan Clyne.
Holdfast Bay Mayor and former AFL player Stephen Patterson has ousted sitting Liberal MP Duncan McFetridge in a preselection battle and will contest his Glenelg-based seat of Morphett.
Professor Jaensch, and party strategists on both sides, argue that star power is best placed in marginal seats.
“You wouldn’t waste a celebrity candidate in one of your safe seats,” Professor Jaensch says.
“Where you hope the star candidate will work is in a marginal seat or in one of your opposition’s seats.”
A key risk, however, is that celebrity candidates rarely emerge from the party machine.
Instead of a disciplined foot soldier who has planned for decades to enter Parliament, they are often high-profile, opinionated characters whose views are already on the record but may not line up with party doctrine. In other words, you can’t control them.
“On the outside, they look like great candidates but they can cause chaos,” one Labor Party insider put it.
For this reason, the general view is that they should be used sparingly to pinch key seats.
And they are not always the best option over a candidate who is more suited to the local area.
Many potential star candidates are approached behind the scenes by both parties, but turn down the offers.
For example, speculation has previously swirled around the likes of anti-violence campaigner Arman Abrahimzadeh, who has so far stayed out of state politics.
Professor Jaensch doesn’t blame those who don’t jump at the chance.
“If you’re a super high-profile person with a successful career, why on Earth would you want to go into politics,” he laughs.
Ms Cornes declined to comment.
Star power in politics
The hits
PETER GARRETT
The Midnight Oil frontman was preselected for the Labor Party in 2004, serving as Federal Environment Protection, Heritage and Arts Minister in the Kevin Rudd Government and School Education, Early Childhood and Youth Minister under his successor, Julia Gillard. Garrett moved on to the backbench after the party’s second leadership spill, before retiring from politics at the 2013 election.
MAXINE McKEW
The former ABC veteran was recruited to the Labor Party for the 2007 federal election. She defeated then Prime Minister John Howard to claim the seat of Bennelong. In 2009, she was promoted to Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, before losing her seat to another celebrity candidate — the Liberals’ John Alexander — in 2010.
JOHN ALEXANDER
The former tennis pro was elected to Parliament in 2010, taking Bennelong back for the Coalition. At the 2013 election, he increased his majority in the seat, turning it into a safer Liberal seat. He remains in Parliament.
COREY WINGARD
Media experience helped Wingard secure the state seat of Mitchell at the 2014 election. The former journalist worked at Channel 9 in Sydney and Melbourne and later for Channel 10 in Adelaide, hosting a football show and major events including the AFL, IPL cricket and Delhi Commonwealth Games. He has served as the Opposition’s transport spokesman and now covers the portfolios of industry, sport, recreation and racing.
The Misses
NICOLE CORNES
The wife of former Adelaide Crows coach Graham Cornes ran as a Labor Party candidate in the 2007 federal election for the seat of Boothby. Her campaign was marred by gaffes, including admitting she had previously voted for the Liberal Party, and she faced criticism she was underprepared.
NIGEL SMART
A long career with the Adelaide Crows Football Club helped Smart bring major star power to the 2006 state election contest in the seat of Norwood. He also brought book smarts, with degrees in geography and politics. But the celebrity candidate lost out to Labor’s local lady Vini Ciccarello, a former Kensington and Norwood Council mayor.
MAL MENINGA
The high-profile rugby league coach campaigned for an ACT Government spot during that territory’s 2001 election. It was a very short-lived political career. Being interviewed on ABC radio, he announced he was “buggered”, left the studio and resigned.
GLENN LAZARUS
The former professional rugby league player ran as a Palmer United Party candidate for the Senate in the 2013 federal election and won. However, tensions prompted him to quit the party. He stayed on as an independent and had plans to start his own political party, the Glenn Lazarus Team, but wasn’t given the chance at the 2016 poll.
NOVA PERIS
The Olympic hockey gold medallist joined politics amid controversy. She was endorsed in 2013 by then Prime Minister Julia Gillard as a “captain’s pick” to run for a Northern Territory Senate spot held by a sitting Labor senator, Trish Crossin. Crossin, an MP of 15 years at the time, slammed the PM’s push as undermining the preselection process. Peris was successful, but quit politics before the next election.