Election 2025: Climate 200 founder’s desperate 11th-hour $1m cash grab from donors

Millionaire activist and Climate 200 founder Simon Holmes à Court has launched a last-ditch plea for almost $1m cash in the final days of the campaign, with the futures of four teal independents hanging in the balance.

Simon Holmes à Court, centre, with (left to right) Kate Chaney, Allegra Spender, Monique Ryan, Zoe Daniel, Sophie Scamps and Zali Steggall. Artwork: Emilia Tortorella

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Millionaire activist and Climate 200 founder Simon Holmes à Court has launched a last-ditch plea for an almost $1m cash grab in the last week of the election campaign, with the futures of four teal independents hanging in the balance.

In an email that called on his supporters to chip in to their “11th-hour fighting fund”, Mr Holmes à Court admitted he was “increasingly concerned” that MPs Monique Ryan, Zoe Daniel, Sophie Scamps and Kate Chaney were at serious risk of losing their seats, blaming an “enormous presence” of a “network of front groups” and a surge in Liberal Party spending for the independents’ woes.

Mr Holmes à Court revealed he had already corralled nearly $690,000 from wealthy backers for a “fighting fund” and was seeking a top-up of $230,000 to prop up the campaigns.

He promised donations would be “quadrupled” through undisclosed matching contributions.

Climate 200 founder Simon Holmes à Court. Picture: Morgan Hancock

In the email that was obtained by The Australian, Mr Holmes à Court lashed out at what he called “astro-turf” front groups, a swipe at grassroots volunteers he accused of distributing “misleading” and “misogynistic” flyers.

He also painted a picture of teal volunteers facing “verbal abuse and intimidation”, although such claims have not been independently verified.

The “fighting fund” will support independents to boost their on-the-ground advertising and stay neck-and-neck with the Liberals’ digital budget.

“I would not be making this ask if I didn’t truly believe that we were at risk of losing four independent climate, integrity and gender equity champions from parliament,” he wrote.

“They are being outspent and the enormous presence of ‘astro-turf’ front groups on the ground also makes it appear they’re outnumbered.

“However, now that prepoll is under way, I’m increasingly concerned that this could play out very differently in some seats, and there are four independent MPs I now believe to be at risk.

“It’s clear these independents – Monique Ryan in Kooyong, Zoe Daniel in Goldstein, Sophie Scamps in Mackellar, and Kate Chaney in Curtin – are being outspent and are outnumbered by a network of front groups running a range of attacks.”

The plea for cash comes after The Australian revealed Dr Ryan had resorted to a last-minute plea for $20,000 in donations after claiming shadowy conservative forces were conspiring against her.

It also comes after the political action group pumped $520,000 in donations into Ms Daniel’s campaign in Goldstein.

“So I’ve pulled together a group of our core supporters, and together we’ve set up an 11th-hour fighting fund,” Mr Holmes à Court continued. “The good news is the fighting fund already has significant backing, with almost $690,000 pledged. There’s a gap of roughly $230,000 remaining that I’m hoping some of you can help fill. So here’s the deal: every donation to the fighting fund will be quadrupled until we hit the $230,000 target.”

Teal independent MP Monique Ryan at a Jewish community election forum. Picture: Brendan Beckett

Dr Ryan revealed on Monday that Climate 200 had provided less than 20 per cent of funding to her Kooyong campaign, but was unsure whether the group was her largest donor.

She said it was “utterly inappropriate” of media to focus on one crowdfunding group.

“It’s frustrating for me that the media concentrates so much on a single crowdfunding body,” she told ABC Radio National.

“It’s utterly inappropriate that you concentrate so much on a single body when there are much larger amounts of money being spent on the election by other support groups, particularly for the right.

“Climate 200 itself has had more than 20,000 donors, so this whole painting of Climate 200 as a murky presence behind the independent campaigns … It’s painting a picture which is inaccurate.”

Simon Holmes à Court has accused the Repeal the Teal group of misogyny.

In a post on X last week, millionaire climate champion Mr Holmes à Court accused the Repeal the Teal grassroots activist group of being “misogynistic”, saying it was installed by Scott Morrison’s former secretary Yaron Finkelstein.

But The Australian has confirmed the group was privately funded and initiated by two women, Sharon Kuper from the Kooyong electorate and Simonne Whine from Goldstein. They have no political experience or ties to the former prime minister.

Ms Kuper told The Australian the campaign was organised by two suburban housewives, dismissing Mr Holmes à Court’s claim of misogyny.

“Simon Holmes à Court proved himself to be the misogynist, falsely attributing our campaign to a man,” Ms Kuper said. “This campaign is devised and led by two ordinary women with no previous political experience or affiliation.”

In the final days before the election on Saturday, Peter Dutton will visit the Melbourne electorates of Goldstein and Kooyong, two teal-held seats the party needs to win back to regain majority government.

Coalition campaign spokesman James Paterson said Mr Holmes à Court was panicking in the final week of the campaign, adding that voters were becoming aware of his “hand-picked” politicians’ alliance with Greens Party policies.

“Climate 200’s desperate last-minute fundraising appeal reads more like a phishing scam than a legitimate fundraising request,” Mr Paterson said.

“Simon Holmes à Court is panicking because he knows voters are waking up to his hand-picked teal politicians who vote on average 73 per cent of the time with the extreme Greens.

“They misled their constituents before the last election by pretending to be a nicer version of the Liberal Party. Given their track record in office, it’s no wonder voters now prefer the real thing.”