Campbell: Voice risk for Liberals

A glance at the non-Voice issues conservative activist group Advance promotes shows why its ability to radicalise members makes some Liberals very nervous, writes James Campbell.

You’d think the increasing likelihood the No case will prevail in October would have put a spring in the steps of the Liberals.

What with being out of office in Canberra and in every state except Tasmania, there hasn’t been a lot to cheer about lately.

But while their growing confidence the referendum will be defeated has brought comfort to what would otherwise have been a gloomy winter of discontent, some worry even this success has drawbacks.

Some Liberals think that, while defeating the Voice was necessary, and they are keen to give Peter Dutton credit for the way he has gone about things, and this will take some paint off Anthony Albanese, it is at the end of the day a distraction.

As nice as a Voice win might be, they fear it won’t help them in teal land – those nice affluent places that until recently were their heartland, and where a large chunk of the Liberal membership still lives.

Ask a Liberal MP to point to anything Peter Dutton has done in the 15 months he has been leader to try to win the teal seats back. Aside, that is, from cooking dinner last week for Annabel Crabb. Picture: ABC

If you want to see a Liberal MP stumped for words, ask them to point to anything Peter Dutton has done in the 15 months he has been leader to try to win the teal seats back. Aside, that is, from cooking dinner last week for Annabel Crabb.

The other dampener for Liberals is a fear victory wouldn’t belong to the Liberal and National parties, but to the activist group Advance, which is running the No campaign.

An examples of anti-Voice material produced by the advocacy group Advance.

This group – formerly Advance Australia, founded in 2018 – has finally achieved the dream of creating a viable conservative alternative to leftie GetUp. But, having been paranoid for years about GetUp and what it might do to them, Liberals have now decided to mix things up a bit by becoming paranoid too about Advance and what it might do to them. With, I suspect, more reason.

Liberals worry Advance draws its money from the same people who give to the Liberal Party and LNP.

And through its No campaign vehicles, Advance will have harvested the details of thousands of Liberal members and supporters.

No doubt GetUp has details of thousands of Labor members and supporters too, which it can use to rev them up on refugees and climate change and who knows what else.

But the people who run the ALP couldn’t care less about that because what the branchies think is of little interest to them. Things are decided in Labor by a tight cabal of union secretaries and people who can persuade others they speak on behalf of union secretaries.

In a way that Labor folk find deeply mystifying, the Liberal Party and the LNP are run by their members, and MPs who stray too far from their opinions don’t last very long.

Federal Opposition Leader with candidates and party members coming in before the vote at a Fadden LNP preselection at Runaway Bay Community Centre in June. The Liberal Party and the LNP are run by their members, and MPs who stray too far from their opinions don’t last very long. Picture: Mike Batterham

A glance at the non-Voice things Advance is on about shows why its ability to radicalise their members makes some Liberals very nervous.

Advance’s “Not Zero” anti-net zero campaign claims “all sides of politics have been infected with this woke climate hysteria” and that instead of representing “everyday Aussies like you, our politicians”, including Peter Dutton and the Coalition, “have chosen to pander to big business and inner-city elites”.

Then there’s “Power Up Australia”, a campaign to “run our nation on nuclear energy” which is not only “the cheapest energy for households and business” but “also the cleanest”.

A cashed-up activist group that can mainline this stuff into the members is a nightmare for Liberal moderates. But it should have the Right worried too, because not only is Advance beyond their control but activist groups tend to become more radical or risk being outflanked by edgier rivals.