McEwen battle hots up

By Melissa Donchi
WITH just 12 days to go until the federal election the battle for McEwen is officially on.
Labor candidate Robert Mitchell has declared war by claiming the seat ‘winnable.’
And after months of favourable opinion polls for Labor, he might not be wrong.
But McEwen’s Liberal MP Fran Bailey is all too familiar with the pre-election tussle and is not conceding anything – not even the polls.
“I know it’s not what the polls are saying but the main thing I hear from people is that they don’t want Mr Rudd,” Ms Bailey said.
“They know that a lot of what I’m able to get to put back into the community you can only do when you have a strong and stable economy.”
A resident of the Yarra Valley for more than 32 years, Ms Bailey knows the electorate like the back of her hand and knows how to get results.
This year alone she has secured $1.24 million for after-hours medical services, $55,000 for a Yarra Glen doctors surgery and $5.5 million for the Yarra Glen bypass. But it hasn’t always been smooth sailing.
Ms Bailey won her seat after a bitter game of tug of war, winning the seat in 1990, losing it in 1993 and then taking it back in 1996.
Twelve years and three elections later she has well and truly conquered the seat if only by a small margin.
A swing against Labor in the 2004 election boosted the margin to 6.4 per cent, which changed its classification from marginal to safe.
But Centrebet has the odds at a much closer margin with Ms Bailey in the lead at $1.55 and her Labor opponent Rob Mitchell not far behind at $2.30.
Even Mr Mitchell likes his chances describing the seat as ‘winnable.’ “It’s going to be very, very tough,” Mr Mitchell said.
“I’ve got a well resourced opponent who makes every bit of the resources she has but I don’t see it as not being winnable.”
Mr Mitchell said the interest rate scare that turned voters against Labor in the 2004 election would not necessarily work again this time.
“We’ve had nine successive interest rate rises under the Howard Government and people are quite frankly sick of being told they’ve never had it so good,” Mr Mitchell said.
“The cost of living has risen dramatically and people are having trouble paying for their groceries and fuel not to mention childcare, health and education.”
Mr Mitchell says official campaign duties have become his full-time job as he continues to meet and greet constituents throughout the electorate.
“I’m out there every day, I leave home about 5am and am on the road until about 10pm that night,” Mr Mitchell said.
“I’m talking with people at schools and shopping centres to get a feel for what the real issues for people are.”
Another candidate out on the road is the Green Party’s Steve Meacher who is also contesting the seat of McEwen.
Mr Meacher says the differences between the major and minor parties are most apparent when it comes to campaigning.
“For a small party with few resources it does make things particularly difficult,” Mr Meacher said. “I know the Labor party is putting a lot of resources into the seat because it does consider it winnable.”
“The coalition are giving away a lot of money as they realise now they have to work hard to hold onto it,” Mr Meacher said. “It’s still a marginal seat despite what the numbers say.”
Mr Meacher, who became a candidate for McEwen in March this year, said the community was divided over Ms Bailey.
“Those that remain loyal to her like the idea that she has been around for a while but those who want to see the back of her really want to see the back of her,” Mr Meacher said.
“A lot of people have nothing against her and want to see the back of John Howard.”