They let the sound-system rip early at the Greens Northcote victory party last Saturday night, and it went late.
By 8pm, at cavernous pine-planky wine bar Vinorium, candidate Lidia Thorpe had spoken, state leader Samantha Ratnam had spoken, and then, from afar, the ABC’s Antony Green had spoken — and called it for his namesakes, on a 12% swing. It was all over.
They started with Replica. Pretty soon it was Heaven Is A Place On Earth.
Eighties, man. Some of these people had been waiting for victory for a long long time.
They weren’t just celebrating a victory based on hard work, local issues and grassroots campaigning; some of them were celebrating that the party went in hard, uncompromising.
For weeks, the debate had gone back and forth as to how negative to go. Greens don’t like doing that. And they’ve lost dead-cert seats because of it before, with older, perhaps redder activists fuming.
Not this time. In the last week, a leaflet went round Northcote, detailing the full story on Labor candidate Clare Burns, sharehouse renter and vegan.
And, as the leaflet made clear, also part of the Labor right-wing machine in the area, aligned with MP Adem Somyurek, opposed to legal abortion, among other peccadilloes.
Good on ’em for doing it.
There were also some more prosaic reasons. Hard work, doorknocking local issues where Labor had shown its corporate character: public housing sell-off, crap public transport, ramming through the Alphington paper mill development.
But there was also the Greens’ determination to win it.
Meanwhile, the mood at Labor’s Saturday night party was (haha) sombre. It was just a few blocks up High Street at the Thornbury Theatre, looking like the Italian wedding from hell. (Not inappropriate: Clare Burns is Batman MP David Feeney’s god-daughter.)
The Animal Justice Party dinner was at Lentil As Anything, on the opposite side of the street. The party preferenced Labor again. Turkeys eaten by the Greens.
Everyone was shocked at Labor: they had no idea this sort of loss was coming.
They should have. Lacklustre campaign, heavy on paid ads, thin on the ground, and in the midst, a Herald Sun coded racist smear against Thorpe going bankrupt years ago to clear an abusive partner’s debts. In a byelection caused by the death of Fiona Richardson, sheer genius from someone.
As to demographic drift? Yes, of course, but the Right thinks that means Green-voting areas are full of trans unicyclists who holiday in North Korea.
But Greens voters, apart from students, and leftish older Labor voters, are the professional/knowledge classes, living in those concrete apartments going up all along High Street.
Public servants, HR people, analysts, consultants, lawyers of a certain type, content producers. Bike-riders, tram-users, Nova-goers, Netflix-watchers.
They are the new middle class.
And they see the Greens as their natural and obvious representatives. They align not just with what they think, but how they think; that politics, policy and administration is the management of complex systems, applying rationality and best practice.
Put up a Labor Right-faction candidate here, you may as well put up someone who believes in the divine right of kings.
So why do it? Because of Victoria’s Stability Pact, and territorial claims, and the usual: the Labor Right would rather lose government than lose a seat to the Socialist Left.
And the Left are willing to wear it — for what? So that the Right can sell off the Port of Melbourne, and the Left can proudly introduce gender-neutral traffic lights?
What a deal.
And what now? Labor will sook about how they’re the real people’s representatives. If the Left doesn’t ensure real candidates get up, they’ll serve up Brunswick and Richmond on a plate. And then some.
For the Greens, a lot of challenges ahead but last Saturday night in one bar, oooh heaven …
‘(Not inappropriate: Clare Burns is Batman MP David Feeney’s god-daughter.)’
*Jiggles bracket cage, reckons ‘yep still could easy’, bites down on bespoke leather bit instead, horrifying moment passes…*
Acute as ever, though one tends to prefer the earlier, funnier work.
Greens champion Guy Rundle writes another typical biased piece.
Three main factors were actually at work:
1. Demographic changes – young people moving in, older (ALP voters) exiting.
2. Absence of a liberal candidate – hence lib voters felt free to damage the ALP.
3. Some ALP voters decided to punish the party because of the party’s stance on refugees. This is easier to do in a by-election.
The good news is that Lydia will have to defend the seat within 12 months. A state-wide election means the issues will be very different and we will be able to see how the Greens voting record in state parliament stands up to scrutiny. Watch this space. But don’t rely on Guy for any sensible analysis.
So these ultra smart people who vote for the Greens in Northcote…just elected an indigenous (good move) candidate who left school at 14, and wouldn’t know what day it is if someone didn’t tell her!
I heard her interviewed by Jon Faine during the campaign…she couldn’t string a sentence together, and had absolutely NOTHING to say about anything!!
You get who you vote for…good luck with that!!!!!
And Guy…give it a rest. You sound just as biased as any of those drongos at the Australian. Greens wonderful, L/NP good, Labor very bad…we’ve heard it all before from you (so called progressive) pretenders. A recipe for instability…but don’t take my word for it…just have a look at what is going on in Germany.
Anybody with at least half a brain does NOT WANT THAT HAPPENING HERE!!
There is no point yelling about it here – the voters put the Greens in.
The essential thing is progressives are going to head in their direct because the ALP has forgotten it’s roots. Getting into bed with Adani is a case in point. Pick a side, and if it is big capital, then you pay the price.
“just have a look at what is going on in Germany.” You’ve got no idea what’s going on in Germany, cobber.
Okay…then since you know everything, why don’t you enlighten us all on your version of ‘what’s going on in Germany’?
I am no expert on Germany, but it sure looks like a mess of MINOR parties, all squabbling about forming a government, while Merkel from the MAJOR party has the job of herding cats!
And you think this is a good way to run a country? Especially when the task of governing becomes impossible, and there is now talk of yet another election to attempt government formation?
Good luck with that!!!!!
If you think that you have nailed Grundle down to a recognizable political philosophy, good luck.
I reckon that he is a Socio-pacifist-vegan-sino-capital-Monarchist-anarchist-far-right-outer-left-techno-free-love commune. Possibly somewhat Greenish, too?
Who can tell?
Also a unicyclist
In particular about this knowledge/policy class, Nudiefish. Today they’re the new middle class (allies of the working class?). Other days, they’re the new ruling class (their overlords?). The ALP has been captured by them. But their natural home is the Greens. They’re numerically weak elite now, but decades hence they’ll be the masses. They’re unswervingly socially progressive, but utterly materially beholden to the establishment, hence the civil war of the Greens, and the unreflective presumption of belonging at the centre power that led directly to the Greens losing Ludlam and Waters. It’s head-spinning stuff. But never dull.
Christ, some people will resort to any flimsy argument to avoid admitting that people voting Greens are doing so because the Greens’ policies match their beliefs and ideals most closely. Getting very tired of being told that Greens voters are basically imaginary, and are really Labor voters who are having a cranky day.
yes yes yes
1. I mentioned demographic factors. As I have for years. As I bleeding obvious to anyone anyway
2. Liberal voters are as likely to shift to a right Labor candidate against the Greens as to go Green. They cancel each other out, on that basis
3, What’s the evidence for that, and for it to be enough for a 12% swing. Straw clutching
Thank you for expressing why I think the Greens best represent me:
“that politics, policy and administration is the management of complex systems, applying rationality and best practice”
I was really surprised Labor lost as I reckon the Vic Labor govt is really quite good, as far as state governments go. Certainly they offer a number of decent progressive policies, and there’s no way I’d want to see the hard right Lib opposition rewarded, especially with rampaging Matthew Guy in charge. Melb would be all freeways and giant towers, more so than it already is. But I’m now less surprised at the result after learning through this piece that the Labor candidate was from the right faction etc. etc. Explains a lot.
Agree that the Andrews government has been good overall as far as the ALP goes. Possibly the best ALP gov in my voting life (i.e. since 2001). The way the ALP has divvied up Northcote (and Batman) as right faction seats is self defeating though. One of their main arguments against the Greens is that they can provide a voice on the inside to advocate for “left wing views”. I’m cynical about the effectiveness of this in practice at the best of times, but when the ALP offers the likes of Burns, Feeney and Martin Ferguson to be these left wing advocates, it becomes a bit of a sick joke.
May I share this in full as I have many people requesting a read? Don’t wish to break copyrights.
It hasn’t held me back on the odd occasion. A couple of friends even subscribed so they could access the back catalogue!
Thanks, perhaps I should just do a snippet of the important piece & make sure Crikey gets credit.
Really you should be advising your friends to subscribe. It doesn’t cost much and it’s what keeps Crikey going.
Agree, but also think if you offer a carrot they will crave for more. When I signed up for Crikey many blue moons ago, it was for that reason. Got a taste and wanted more.
0n the subject of “It doesn’t cost much”, are you talking about aged pensioners who don’t have any other income?
If so you are way of the mark.
Single, aged pensioners get around $22,500 a year. Budgeting that amount of money is a force to be reckoned with. As a matter of fact “we” most often, can work out a budget for the year that would shame many finance ministers.
To subscribe to Crikey, means most other online subscriptions are cut with a very fine toothcomb.
Crikey does give discount for concession card holders, still expensive but worth every penny.
As you were. 🙂