‘So angry’: Kristina Keneally candidacy infuriated voters, Dai Le says

The candidate who pulled off the “near impossible” by beating Kristina Keneally in a safe Labor seat has shared her community’s anger.

The independent candidate who defeated Labor’s Kristina Keneally in what was previously an ultra-safe seat has said voters were “insulted” and “so angry” about the party parachuting in a candidate with no connection to their community.

Fowler, in western Sydney, has never been held by anyone other than Labor. Retiring MP Chris Hayes won it with 64 per cent of the two-party vote in 2019. And yet, on Saturday night, independent Dai Le managed to beat Ms Keneally there.

The high profile Labor frontbencher, who previously lived 50 kilometres away in the northern beaches, had been parachuted into the seat.

Fowler was called on election night, though Ms Keneally waited until Sunday evening to at last concede defeat.

“It seems that Labor will not claim in victory in Fowler. I congratulate Dai Le and wish her well,” she said.

“Thank you to the people who voted Labor and the volunteers on our campaign.”

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There were signs of trouble for Ms Keneally the week before the election, as Anthony Albanese used valuable time to visit her seat. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Speaking to ABC television this morning, Ms Le conveyed the anger her new constituents had expressed about Ms Keneally’s candidacy.

“A lot of voters were so angry with the fact that the Labor Party was arrogant enough to think that they can parachute somebody from the northern beaches to come and represent the south-west, one of the most socially disadvantaged communities, to represent us,” Ms Le said.

“She has no roots here. She’s not connected to this area. So how can we trust that she can deliver for us? She’s never lived through the challenges that we have lived through.

“Labor voters especially were very – they thought it was a slap in the face and an insult to them. Those were the comments I received when voters came to vote for me. They have never voted for anybody else other than Labor.”

Ms Le made a point of distancing herself from the teal independents, half a dozen of whom have claimed previously safe Liberal seats.

“My electorate here has a different need to the electorates that the teal independents are representing. But I have no doubt there would be some issues that we will, you know, have some conversations over,” she said.

“I think our community here is ready for change, and this will send a message to the major parties that they need to look at candidates that actually are connected to the community they are asked to represent.”

Dai Le, the independent who beat Kristina Keneally in Fowler. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Ms Le also spoke to 2GB host Ray Hadley, who applauded her for accomplishing the “near impossible” task of taking Fowler from Labor.

“I never, for one moment, doubted that our community wanted someone from our community to represent them,” she told him.

Labor Party insiders have expressed sympathy for Ms Keneally, though several have also questioned the wisdom of parachuting her into Fowler.

“We got what we deserved,” one of them told The Sydney Morning Herald.

“Kristina is an excellent parliamentarian and member of the team, but that seat didn’t make sense. The manoeuvre to put her into Fowler was wrong and the people clearly agreed.”

Meanwhile Tu Le, the local Labor candidate who was shoved aside so Ms Keneally could run, has said she was “shocked” by the result.

“On the ground there was a bit of outrage at about the parachuted candidate, to be frank, but it was considered one of the safest seats in the country, so I didn’t expect the result,” she said.

“This outcome sent a clear message to political parties that you can’t take local communities for granted and ignore community voices.”

Ms Keneally during the election campaign. Picture: Liam Kidston

At a campaign event on Wednesday night, three days before the election, news.com.au asked Ms Keneally about the impression among many locals that she was using Fowler for her own political advancement, as opposed to running out of a genuine concern for the community.

“With the retirement of Chris Hayes, many branch members in Fowler asked me to consider running,” said Ms Keneally.

“Many branch members would have preferred a local person, someone who’s actually from the community,” we put to her.

She said she was “delighted and honoured” to have won the preselection contest.

Ms Keneally was also asked about the fact that Mr Hayes, the outgoing MP, had advocated for a different Labor candidate, Tu Le.

“Upon (Hayes’) retirement, there’s a great opportunity to give Fowler something they’ve never had before, which is a senior minister representing them in the House of Representatives,” Ms Keneally responded.

It turned out the people of Fowler were more interested in being represented by someone who, in Ms Le’s words, was “actually connected to the community”.

Originally published as ‘So angry’: Kristina Keneally candidacy infuriated voters, Dai Le says