Election campaign diaries of Penny Wong and Christopher Pyne

WHAT was the federal election like for the people running? Senior SA MPs Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong have opened their election diaries for an insight into the gruelling campaign’s final weeks.

Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong.

WHAT was the federal election really like for MPs? Senior SA MPs Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong have opened their election diaries for an insight into the gruelling campaign’s final weeks.

PENNY WONG

 

Saturday June 25

The final week of a long campaign and I’m happy to be back in Adelaide for the push to the line. Fortunately, sharing the role of national campaign spokeswoman has meant I’ve been able to spend more time here in SA working on the local campaign, especially for the Senate. This morning I spoke at the AEU women’s conference. It was good to be with educators who understand why needs-based funding matters — for our children and our economy.

 

Sunday June 26

Grabbed a quick yum cha at a local restaurant in Hindmarsh with Steve Georganas. Chatted to the staff, and a few fellow diners. Steve’s a popular guy. In the afternoon, campaigned for Mark Butler in Port Adelaide. Mark’s so important to Labor, here and nationally. Although Nick X is getting a lot of attention, I’m yet to meet anyone who actually knows much about his candidate in the Port.

 

Monday June 27

It was good to visit nurses at Flinders Medical Centre with Catherine King, Steve Georganas, Mark Ward, and Anne McEwen. We heard first-hand about the impact of cuts to hospitals and attacks on Medicare. Nurses ... are rightly worried about threats to penalty rates. Later recorded a radio advertisement. Rewrote the script in the studio! And they say campaigning is so centrally controlled ... Ended the day on Lateline.

 

Tuesday June 28

Started the day with Steve Georganas again, this time at a tram stop. Chilly. Tanya Plibersek visited Adelaide today. Along with Anne McEwen, Tanya and I met with staff from the Central Domestic Violence Centre. The centre provides temporary accommodation for women experiencing family violence. Amazing staff doing such critical work. Talked with them about Labor’s plans for more funding for victims, community legal centres, and the Working Women’s Centre. In the afternoon, recorded some Facebook videos for the last days of the campaign, then did a Facebook Live with Mark Butler.

 

Senator Penny Wong.

Wednesday June 29

Today I phoned voters and handed out How to Vote cards at an early voting centre in Sturt with Matt Loader. Good feeling from those I called — once I convinced some of them it was genuinely Penny Wong on the phone! Matt is doing a great job in Sturt highlighting the impact of the Liberals’ neglect of South Australia. Ended the day handing out at a tram stop in the city in the rush hour. All pretty positive, but like me I think most people will be quite pleased when this is all over.

 

Thursday June 30

Early start this morning talking with commuters at the Adelaide Railway Station. Health and education funding, and penalty rates — the things at risk if the Turnbull Government is re-elected — were hot topics on another cold morning. Later I visited Underdale High School Trade Training Centre with Premier Jay Weatherill. Great to see Labor’s past investments preparing students for the advanced manufacturing jobs our state’s future depends upon. Attended the SANFL Iftar dinner in the evening. Great to see community (and bipartisan) support for inclusion and respect.

 

Friday July 1

I spent most of the day phoning South Australians to talk about the key issues in this campaign — health, education and jobs and about why we need a strong Labor team in the Senate. Labor’s Senate team led the fight against the unfair 2014 Budget — but for Labor senators there would be a GP tax, cuts to the pension and $100,000 degrees. And without the pressure we put on the Liberals, there would have been no submarines for Adelaide. But you have to back this work in with a strong campaign. For the first time in decades Labor has run a co-ordinated Senate campaign in South Australia. We know votes in the Senate can never be taken for granted. Hopefully the hard work of all our Senate candidates will yield results.

 

Saturday July 2

I cast my vote at Goodwood Primary School with Kate Ellis. Spent the rest of the morning visiting Labor volunteers at polling booths across Adelaide. All our candidates and volunteers have done such a great job.

Travelled to Sydney for the ABC television election night panel. After seven hours even Antony Green couldn’t call the result. I am very pleased about the increase in our Senate vote in South Australia, where we achieved a swing to us of around 5 per cent, the re-election of my existing House colleagues, and the likely return of Steve Georganas in Hindmarsh.

After 2013 some people wrote off Labor’s chance at this election. Bill Shorten and the Labor team have proved them wrong.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE

Sunday, June 26

It’s the final countdown! Only six days left to win as many votes before Election Day. Today I visited Influencers Church, a large Christian congregation in my electorate, and then spent time with my family during the day. In the late afternoon, six young liberals from NSW and two from Canberra arrived to help out in the last six days of the campaign. We immediately put them to work and, along with the whole campaign team, did a mass telephone canvassing effort at Liberal Party headquarters with my help. We made 1000 calls to voters within my electorate.

Monday, June 27

I started the day with the early morning leadership call (consisting of the Prime Minister, campaign director and others), followed by a media appearance on Channel 7’s The Morning Show. I then had the opportunity to launch the Raytheon Naval and Integration HQ with the Prime Minister at Raytheon’s headquarters in Parkside in front of the national media. Doorknocking in Campbelltown was the next activity on my list, followed by an early evening polling booth captain’s briefing ahead of the big day on Saturday.

  

Tuesday, June 28

After the leadership call in the morning, I travelled into the city to announce a Federal Government would commit $9.7 million to upgrade Memorial Drive.

Stephen Marshall, Matt Williams and David Colovic also joined me to make the announcement and address the media. I had a great time announcing such an important investment and having a hit of tennis with some up and coming tennis stars. I then went back to Campbelltown for more doorknocking.  In the early afternoon, I went into the Channel 10 studios in Adelaide to film a prerecorded interview with the panel on The Project. I then did some telephone canvassing before meeting with a few constituents about their various concerns. That night I came home to find that our dog; Tilly the labrador had eaten through the back fence!

 

Christopher Pyne casting his vote at St Peter Girls School in Stoneyfell.

Wednesday, June 29

I woke to a bitterly cold Adelaide morning and did an interview over the phone with Triple M Adelaide about yesterday’s Memorial Drive announcement. I then had my weekly chat to Will, David and Anthony Albanese on our “Two Tribes” segment on 5AA. Next on my list was more doorknocking in Campbelltown, followed by a visit to the pre-poll at Glynde. Today was the day that the Shorten Today show trainwreck interview was doing its rounds on social media and I had a particularly nasty NXT volunteer at pre-poll. I ended the night with phone canvassing in my electorate office.

 

Thursday, June 30

I began the morning with Mass at St Joseph’s Tranmere. When I returned to the office, I sent each and everyone one of the volunteers helping out on polling booths on Saturday an encouraging message to thank them and fire them up for Saturday.  There was flash flooding in Myrtle Bank while out doorknocking which added a bit of excitement to what was a freezing cold day.

In an electorate wide letter NXT candidate Matthew Wright finally gets his message right but hopefully it’s too late. I spent quite a long time talking to voters at the pre-poll at Glynde and then went straight to supermarketing. My volunteers and I managed to visit six supermarkets tonight to give out our “Pyne delivers” shopping bags and shopping lists.

 

Friday, July 1

My volunteers and I started very early in the freezing cold to go poster waving at three of the biggest intersections in my electorate. I then made my way to the Glynde pre-poll. Many voters were out to vote early and the Adelaide media outlets had shown up. I was assaulted by NXT volunteer on camera which would later make the evening news here in Adelaide. A very bad look for NXT the day before the election. That night all of the booth captains came to the office to collect their booth kits for set up either tonight or early Saturday morning. I then began my election night eve routine which I had done for 23 years.

 

Saturday, July 2

It was an early start to the day, up at 4am to help volunteers dressing booths. I then visited the Tranmere and Marryatville sausage sizzles and talked to voters. I also visited the Athelstone and Highbury booths during the day. I then made my way back to the office for the anxious wait. As the results came in it became clear that I had won the seat.

A massive relief after a gruelling two-month campaign. The election party night was held at the Robin Hood where I was able to claim victory in Sturt, winning my ninth election.