Allegra Spender leads teals’ record election cash splash

The top 10 biggest-spending independent candidates at the 2022 federal election splashed a total of $12.2 million on their political campaigns, which delivered a record number of lower house crossbench MPs.

The Australian Electoral Commission on Monday published disclosure returns for candidates and election donors, which largely covers independent MPs, as well as details of donations to political candidates. The returns for candidates and Senate groups endorsed by a political party will be published on February 1.

Teals Sophie Scamps, Zoe Daniel, Monique Ryan, Allegra Spender and Kylea Tink all ousted Liberals at the federal election.Credit: Jessica Hromas, Penny Stephens, Luis Enrique Ascui, James Alcock, Getty Images

Allegra Spender spent more than any other independent candidate, outlaying $2,124,058 on her campaign, including $1.9 million in donations, to win the blue-ribbon seat of Wentworth in Sydney’s eastern suburbs from former diplomat Dave Sharma, who held the electorate for the Liberals.

Fellow independent Monique Ryan was close behind, spending $2,122,231, including a bit over $1.8 million in donations to oust then-treasurer Josh Frydenberg from the former Liberal stronghold of Kooyong in Melbourne’s inner east.

Among other successful 2022 candidates, Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel ($1.6 million), North Sydney MP Kylea Tink ($1.4 million) and Mackellar MP Sophie Scamps ($1.2 million) also crossed the $1 million spending threshold on their campaigns, while Curtin MP Kate Chaney spent just under $1 million.

Warringah MP Zali Steggall spent close to $800,000 winning re-election, while failed candidates Rob Priestly (Nicholls), Carolyn Heise (Cowper) and Georgia Steele (Hughes) all spent around $700,000.

The top-spending teal independents were all funded in part by the Climate 200 group, which donated to 19 campaigns with candidates promoting climate action, nine of which were won and ten of which were lost. These disclosures show Climate 200 spent $4.6 million on winning campaigns and $1.3 million on losing campaigns.

In total, Climate 200 raised about $13 million to spend on the independent candidates it supported. The disclosures to come in February will include candidates registered as parties such as Senator David Pocock and Mayo MP Rebekha Sharkie.

The declarations reveal Tink was Climate 200’s ‘top teal’, receiving more cash from them ($808,411 of $1.8 million received in donations) than any other candidate. Chaney ($786,532 of $1,333,093) received the second-highest contribution from Climate 200.

Climate 200’s biggest misses were Carolyn Heise, who received $465,816 from the organisation to contest the seat of Cowper in northern NSW. She didn’t win the seat but reduced incumbent Pat Conaghan’s two-party preferred margin by about four per cent to 52.3-47.7.

The group spent $302,483 on independent candidate Georgia Steele in Hughes, the Sydney seat previously held by Liberal defector Craig Kelly. She won only 14 per cent of the primary vote and finished a distant third to new Liberal MP Jenny Ware and Labor candidate Riley Campbell.

After Climate 200, Spender’s biggest donor’s included William Taylor Nominees ($100,000), Keldoulis Investments ($80,000), Nicholas Fairfax ($50,000), a member of the family that once owned this masthead, and Alex Turnbull ($25,000) the son of former prime minister and member for Wentworth Malcolm Turnbull.

Ryan’s other major donors after Climate 200 included LB Conservation ($100,000), Brian Snape ($50,000) and Climate 200 founder Simon Holmes à Court – once a supporter of Frydenberg – who personally donated $20,000.

In 2019, Frydenberg defeated a challenge from Liberal-turned-independent Oliver Yates, who spent $483,804 – less than one-fifth of Ryan’s 2022 outlay. Yates’ wife Jacqueline also donated $20,000 to Ryan’s campaign.

The spending by independent MPs and candidates at the 2022 election makes up 10 of the top 11 spots for outlays by an independent at any election. Steggall’s $900,000 spend on her successful campaign to oust Tony Abbott in 2019 is the only entry in the top 11 not from 2022.

In comparison, businessman Clive Palmer spent about $83 million on United Australia Party candidates at the 2019 election, while Liberal donations topped $165 million and Labor received $126 million.

The number of independent MPs in the lower house grew from three to 10 at this year’s election, doubling the previous record of five crossbench MPs in 1996. The Greens also gained three seats to have four MPs in the lower house.

Candidates and unendorsed Senate groups are required to disclose the total donations they receive to fund their campaign, the number of donors and details of donations over $14,500 from a single source.

Donors must report donations totalling more than $14,500 made to an individual candidate or member of a Senate group.

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