Longman voters say race too tight to call
POLITICAL party volunteers at a pre-polling booth in the heart of Caboolture are all saying the Longman by-election was too close to call just three days out from Super Saturday.
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POLITICAL party volunteers at a pre-polling booth in the heart of Caboolture are all saying the Longman by-election was too close to call just three days out from Super Saturday.
The volunteers from all the major parties and others were gathered at the booth at the corner of Bertha and Annie Streets this morning, enthusiastically holding their banners and handing out how to vote pamphlets, but none would commit to any candidate securing clear victory.
Former One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts was jiggling two banners for his party’s Longman hopeful Matthew Stephen at the edge of the roundabout near the booth.
Looking worn from long days campaigning, he said Mr Stephen would perform well on Saturday.
“The people of Longman are frustrated that they have to go back to the polls in the first place,” Roberts said.
“And they’re disillusioned with both the tired old parties (ALP and LNP). People are asking what the hell is going wrong with the governance of our country. Our candidate has a ton of energy.”
He said Pauline Hanson, while holidaying in Europe, was in constant touch with Stephen and party officials, and that she had put in more spade work in the electorate of Longman before she left the country than either Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull or Opposition leader Bill Shorten combined.
“People are so tired of Turnbull, but they’re scared of Shorten,” Roberts said. He said Mr Stephen will do well but he couldn’t pick a winner on Saturday.
A spokesman for ALP candidate Susan Lamb said the word in Longman was that the by-election was “looking very tight”.
The spokesman, “Leon”, added: “A lot of people I’ve been speaking to are concerned about health and education and social services, but they can’t comprehend why life’s not getting better for them.
“They don’t understand why the Turnbull Government is giving big money to the big banks with tax cuts.
“It’s the big end of town that’s the priority of the Turnbull Government, and the big end of town is a very long way from Caboolture.
“Susan Lamb has run a fantastic campaign.”
Jarrod, a volunteer for the LNP candidate Trevor Ruthenberg, said any comments about the predicted outcome of the by-election had to “come from headquarters”.
But he was happy with the behaviour at the polling booth.
“We’ve been really lucky with this booth,” he said. “It’s a good bunch of people who have all been really friendly.”
Voters just want it all to be over
IT WILL certainly be a super Saturday for Bribie Island retirees Val and Neville Cuthbert when the Longman by-election is over and their phone finally stops ringing.
The pair, like many in the electorate, are sick and tired of the relentless automated political phone calls they’ve been receiving for weeks.
“It’s at ten to nine in the morning when you’re doing work and trying to get things done,” Ms Cuthbert said.
“I’m absolutely sick of all the telephone calls and I think everyone else is too.”
While Neville has decided to vote for Labor as he’s always done, his wife isn’t yet convinced that any of the candidates deserve her vote.
“I truly don’t like either of them,” she said.
“They’re giving promises and taking them away.”
Veteran Denis Gould has lived on Bribie Island for three years and said Trevor Ruthenberg had his vote.
“I just don’t like Labor — I don’t trust Labor,” he said.
Mr Gould said he didn’t think Mr Ruthenberg’s false medal claim woes had impacted his standing within the community.
“It could have just been an innocent mistake,” he said.
“It won’t change how I’m voting.”
Burt Bowden, a Bribie resident of 26 years, said he was looking forward to the election being over.
“I’ve voted for all different parties and independents over the years,” he said.
“I think the most important thing is the truth.
“There’s so much deception and lies in politics.”
Lies, lies, lies is all Joy Lambie says she’s been hearing during the Longman by-election campaign.
But some are worse than others and some political leaders are even worse, she says.
“There’s been a lot of lying going on as I understand and I don’t like that one political party, one that I have no time for whatsoever because of it’s leader,” she said as she left her retirement village to attend a physiotherapist appointment on Bribie Island.
“I know Susan Lamb has been the incumbent and had to get out because of dual citizenship. I’m not saying she hasn’t done a good job but to be very honest, I won’t be voting for her.”
She’s also upset with Labor claiming that the Coalition was stripping money out of Caboolture Hospital, which she does not believe.
“I just think they say anything to try and get votes,” she said.
Ms Lambie — “definitely no relation to Jacquie” — said her late husband had won a chestful of military medals during a distinguished carer in the Navy and she didn’t believe LNP candidate Trevor Ruthenberg had been trying to embellish his military career by claiming a false medal.
“I don’t think he would have deliberately written something down for the sake of it being read and checked up on,” she said.
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