Liberals launch anti-teals election campaign to win back blue ribbon seats

Peter Dutton has launched a pre-election campaign targeting teal MPs, warning voters not to ‘risk it’ by allowing independents to hold the balance of power.

Material from the Liberal Party’s anti-teal campaign highlighting the teals’ voting records and their policy priorities

You can now listen to The Australian's articles. Give us your feedback.

You can now listen to The Australian's articles.

Peter Dutton has launched a major political campaign targeting teal MPs and candidates, warning voters to not “risk it” by allowing Climate 200-backed independents to hold the balance of power after next year’s federal election.

The federal Liberal Party will use traditional media channels, social media platforms and mailbox drops to amplify its “Teals Revealed” campaign, as the ­Opposition Leader fights to win back blue ribbon seats lost to the teal independents in 2022.

The Australian understands the Liberals are confident of winning back the Melbourne seats of Kooyong and Goldstein from Monique Ryan and Zoe Daniel but are bracing for tougher battles in Curtin and Wentworth, which are held by Kate Chaney and Allegra Spender.

The campaign will be backed by significant resources and expanded as new threats emerge, with expected teal challenges in Coalition seats including Bradfield, Wannon, Cowper, Groom, McPherson and Forrest.

The Liberals are yet to pick their candidate to take on Sophie Scamps in the northern Sydney seat of Mackellar.

Deputy Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, who has visited teal seats multiple times since the election, said a “Labor/Greens/teal minority government would be a disaster for Australia”.

“We will campaign relentlessly to win back the trust of the ­voters in their electorates, because these communities deserve better,” Ms Ley said.

The campaign will feature across traditional media channels and social media platforms.

The Teals Revealed campaign website includes a video attacking the voting records of teal MPs and accusing them of wanting higher taxes.

“The next election will be close, with many commentators predicting a hung parliament. A Labor-Greens-Teals minority government? Don’t risk it,” the ad says.

Campaign materials tell voters that since the last election, eight electorates are now represented by teal independents supported by donations from the Climate 200 group.

“Despite claiming to want ‘transparency’, the teal independents have consistently refused to state who they would support in the event of a hung parliament,” the Liberals’ campaign site states.

Imagery from the campaign.

“The teals’ record shows they vote most often with the Greens, vote far more often with Labor than Liberals, are very unclear on economic policy, are weak on security, use campaign operatives with strong links to Labor and GetUp.”

The Australian last month revealed seven teal MPs voted with the Greens between 73 and 81 per cent of the time over 27 months to August 22. The analysis showed across 234 divisions in parliament the teals voted as a bloc 83 per cent of the time when all seven were in the lower house.

Liberal campaign materials include individual artwork targeting specific teals and broader attacks including that the “teals and the Greens voted against tougher laws to stop criminals getting Australian visas”.

Teal MPs Sophie Scamps, Kylea Tink, Zali Steggall, Zoe Daniel, Allegra Spender and Monique Ryan at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Gary Ramage/NewsWire

Ms Chaney, who won the Perth seat of Curtin in 2022, last week pushed back at Coalition attacks on her voting record: “I’ve been called a “Green-teal” and a “Labor Stooge” … but as an independent, I’m here to serve the Curtin community, not a ­political party. The key is in the name – independent. I vote fairly evenly with all the parties, based solely on merit, not what a party tells me to do.”

On social media, Ms Chaney posted Parliamentary Library data as of October 15 showing across 397 divisions she voted 48 per cent of the time with the ­Liberals, 53 per cent with Labor and 52 per cent with the Greens on climate and environmental protection.

Ms Ley accused the independents of voting “most often with the Greens, they’re weak on national security and they want to raise taxes”.

“While they often brag about their ‘integrity’, the teals refuse to be upfront about which party they would put into government if there is a hung parliament after the election. But what their record clearly shows is that they are most aligned with the Greens and Labor,” Ms Ley said.