Winds of change ensure bloody battle for Labor seat

REPUTATION, kin and creed are all fair game in what has become a bloody battle for Labor's 14th-safest NSW state seat.

REPUTATION, kin and creed are all fair game in what has become a bloody battle for Labor's 14th-safest NSW state seat.

Kogarah, in Sydney's southern suburbs, on the banks of the pretty Georges River, has been held by Labor's Cherie Burton since 1999, with a substantial margin.

In a normal election, a 17.7 per cent buffer would be enough to virtually guarantee victory, but with the winds of change blowing through the state, even the most sober candidates fear a squall.

Ms Burton herself has not had the most abstemious past: in July last year, she lost her licence for refusing a random breath test. At the time, she blamed a chest infection, but now describes the incident as a "lapse of judgment". Members of her former staff have also been accused of corruption, and some within her party have suggested she should retire.

Seeking to capitalise on her opponent's dented reputation, Liberal candidate and local councillor Miray Hindi has opted for a bloody and personal fight. Ms Hindi accused Ms Burton of arrogance and of misrepresenting herself on her campaign material.

"If she had achieved real gains for the community, she wouldn't have to spin," Ms Hindi said, citing Ms Burton's claims she had kept the firebombed Kingsgrove police station open when, in fact, it is being turned into a training facility.

Ms Burton said she had never suggested police officers would be permanently stationed at Kingsgrove. She said the decision to describe the facility as a station rather than a training facility was because there was "not enough space" on the leaflet.

For her part, Ms Burton pointed out that Ms Hindi was under investigation for selling real estate without a licence, saying it was "something voters needed to know". She also accused Ms Hindi of sexism for seeking to highlight the fact that Ms Burton was using a campaign photograph taken in 1999. She described Ms Hindi as a "joke", and said she was still the best person to represent the area.

On the streets of Kogarah, voters seemed unconvinced. Club manager Brett Bolton, who voted Labor at the last NSW election, said he would be backing the Liberals this time around.

"There have been too many stuff-ups from Labor -- just continual bad publicity," he said.

St George Bank worker Susan Wilson said she would still be relying on long-time allegiances when she casts her vote.

"My dad was a big Labor supporter, so I will probably be voting for that way," she said.

Ms Hindi said she was focusing her campaign on health, law and order and road congestion. She said she had been buoyed by the feedback from constituents.

"I'm getting overwhelming support from the people of Kogarah," she said. "I feel like I have a very good chance of winning the seat."

The ABC's election analyst, Antony Green, said any NSW seat with a margin below 20 per cent could be under contention.