Wentworth campaign turns ugly as email smear targets Kerryn Phelps

THE critical Wentworth by-election has turned ugly after an email made “disgusting” claims about the leading candidate.

THE Wentworth by-election campaign has turned ugly, with an email false claiming independent candidate Dr Kerryn Phelps has pulled out of the race because she has HIV being distributed to voters.

Dr Phelps and her Liberal rival Dave Sharma both slammed the email as they appeared together on Channel 9 this morning.

“I was warned that there would be some dirty tricks in a political campaign with as much at stake as this,” Dr Phelps said.

“Hurtful emails are part of the campaign. They are terrible, and they’re hurtful not just to me but to a lot of other people.

“While we think that the stigma around HIV has gone, it clearly hasn’t.

“I think the important thing is that I just press on with my policy agenda. I’m talking to the people of Wentworth about what we can achieve for the future of Australia.”

Dr Phelps said her campaign is “trying to track down” whoever is behind the ruse.

Mr Sharma was equally blunt, saying the email had “no place in the campaign”.

“It’s just vile and despicable, and I was shocked and appalled,” he said.

“Not just for the dishonesty and the smears involved but for the stigma put around people with HIV.”

The condemnation echoed Mr Sharma’s reaction last night, when he said he was “disgusted”.

To avoid a hung parliament the Liberal Party need to win Wentworth's by-election this weekend. #9Today pic.twitter.com/3a5yvGKQ4S

— The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) October 17, 2018

Dr Phelps, who is the favourite to win Saturday’s by-election according to leaked Liberal polling, told the ABC the email was one of the “dirty tricks” in a smear campaign against her.

The email, obtained by the public broadcaster, was sent to hundreds of constituents and organisations from a fake address on Sunday and urged recipients to divert their vote to Mr Sharma.

“Kerryn was diagnosed with HIV yesterday, so no chance she will be running for the election,” the email read.

“Choose Dave Sharma. Otherwise if you choose local white, they will be molesting your children someday.”

News.com.au does not suggest Mr Sharma or anyone involved with his campaign was behind the email.

“The Liberal Party’s Wentworth campaign had absolutely no involvement in the sending of this email. We condemn vile personal smears of this nature,” the Liberal Party said.

Independent candidate in the Wentworth by-election, Kerryn Phelps, at pre-polling at Waverly Oval. Picture: Dylan Robinson.

Dr Phelps is widely considered the Liberal Party’s biggest threat in Wentworth.

Earlier this week, she attracted last-minute support from the son of former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Dr Phelps welcomed Alex Turnbull’s support on Wednesday.

“It’s entirely out of the blue,” she told AAP.

Alex Turnbull, who’s been a vocal critic of the Liberal Party since his father was rolled as leader in August, is now urging Wentworth voters to support the leading independent candidate.

“Realistically if it’s tight, and the preference flows are as they are, it’s better to vote for @drkerrynphelps if you want greater certainty of the Liberals not retaining the seat,” he tweeted.

“And if you vote for (Labor’s Tim Murray) be very sharp about your preferencing.”

Internal Liberal polling, published in The Australian, suggests Dr Phelps could secure 55 per cent of the two-party-preferred vote.

The former Australian Medical Association boss says the polling is heartening, but must be kept in perspective.

“It’s Liberal Party polling, so I think you have to take it with a grain of salt but certainly the mood, the feeling in the community, is that they’re ready for change and that there is a certain momentum,” Dr Phelps said.

Many voters are irate over Canberra’s “thought bubble” to move the Australian embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in the throes of a by-election campaign, she said.

“People are still annoyed and they’re very upset about the chaos in the Liberal Party at the moment.”

Independent candidate in the Wentworth by-election, Kerryn Phelps, at pre-polling at Waverly Oval today. Picture: Dylan Robinson

Dr Phelps has said she’ll seek an urgent briefing from Australian security agencies to understand how and why the Government floated the idea if she wins on Saturday.

She’s not ruled out supporting the move.

Mr Sharma, a former ambassador to Israel, says Mr Morrison’s announcement — which would see Australia follow the United States which has already moved its embassy — has nothing to do with Saturday’s by-election.

Meanwhile, polling commissioned by Greenpeace Australia indicates climate change remains the biggest issue for voters in Wentworth.

More than 40 per cent of voters surveyed in the ReachTEL poll said climate change was their number one issue.

- With AAP