Labor endorses candidate to take on Drummoyne MP John Sidoti
Labor has endorsed TAFE teacher Tom Hore to take on Drummoyne state Liberal MP John Sidoti in the March election.
Inner West
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Labor has endorsed TAFE teacher Tom Hore to take on Drummoyne state Liberal MP John Sidoti in the March election.
Mr Hore, a registered architect, said overdevelopment in the area had compelled him to take on the mammoth task of beating Mr Sidoti, who holds the seat on an 18.8 per cent two-party preferred margin.
“This is most pronounced along our major arterial roads, as we see the transformation of two or three storey streetscapes turned into unplanned canyons,” Mr Hore said.
“Lack of consideration for infrastructure provision is having a devastating effect in some of these new developments and there is a flow on effect to the existing local communities.
“I lament the missed opportunities but also recognise the potential we have to re-energise and engage with our local communities around planning and development.”
Mr Hore’s focus will also be on education and health but he is very unlikely to topple Mr Sidoti who won the seat with a 24 per cent swing in 2011 from Labor, which had held the seat for 49 years straight.
The Greens candidate for Drummoyne is Canada Bay Council’s deputy mayor Charles Jago.
The Liberals are expected to take up to three more weeks to endorse candidates in Strathfield and Summer Hill.
A senior Liberal party source said there was still no clear frontrunner between the two contenders for Strathfield; business owner Leo Wei and Canterbury Bankstown councillor Philip Madirazza.
“Leo has a huge Chinese community behind him; that’s the largest multicultural group in that area,” the source said.
“He’s got access to substantial funds so he will raise a lot of money for the campaign and lives in Burwood.
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“Philip is a grassroots candidate, having been involved with local politics with good grassroots networks.”
While the Liberals see Strathfield — which Labor only holds on a 1.8 per cent margin — as winnable, they expect Summer Hill to be more of a Labor-Greens contest.
The Greens are extremely strong in Newtown and Balmain with their high profile incumbents Jenny Leong and Jamie Parker.
Labor’s candidate is for Newtown is Wiradjuri woman “Aunty” Norma Ingram, who has served as CEO of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council and NSW’s State Aboriginal Land Council.
Labor’s candidate for Balmain is Elly Howse public health PhD student who has campaigned strongly on local issues like Dawn Fraser Pool and Callan Park.
This week Ms Howse welcomed the commitment made by Opposition Leader Michael Daley to retain the Powerhouse Museum at its Ultimo site.
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