The Canberrra Times brings word that RiotACT’s own Gungahlin Al (aka Alan Kerlin) is throwing his hat into the political ring as a Green candidate for Molonglo.
With the Greens hard up against it to hold Caroline Le Couteur’s seat (kindly calculated by neutrals to have roughly a snowball’s chance in hell) a new high profile Molonglo candidate would at first blush appear to be what they need like a hole in the head.
So Al, is this a profile building exercise? Or are you seriously tilting for Shane Rattenbury’s seat?
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Finally a sensible candidate emerges. Its just a shame half of Gungahlin has bee re-distributed out of Molonglo.
GO AL GO!
Good to see. A person who is really representative of his area, people know him and what he thinks and stands for. The Greens do seem to get better grass-roots candidates (our shire Greens are excellent, and very popular across the area, one of them regularly gets the highest personal vote in council elections), but their national candidates are less impressive (Bob Brown and Scott Ludlam being exceptions).
And sometimes running isn’t about winning, but having a chance to get a wider audience for ideas.
Their best chance of getting 2 MLAs elected in Molonglo is running lots of strong candidates. Good candidates will increase the vote for the Green ticket.
Considering my only concern here is that you have trouble distingishing Piranha Plants from Triffids, I’m glad to see this!
Provided we are never under full-scale plant attack, I think you have allot to offer Al, and I will be very interested to see what you have to offer.
I think Gungahlin Al is a far superior Greens candidate than Shane Rattenbury or any of the Greens currently in the assembly at the moment.
While I don’t agree with a lot of his politics, I’d be much more confident in the Greens if Al was their member in Molonglo.
Good to see. I do like that he’s grassroots and actually believes in what he does as well as in his local community.
A refreshing change in a world of self serving duplicitious egotists.
Saw this coming 12 months ago.
As knowledable as Al is on Gungahlin what can he bring to the biggest seat in canberra that runs as far south as Woden and Weston Creek?
Al will do a fantastic job for those north of the lake.
Caroline or Shane from the Greens has attended almost every public meeting, in the inner south; I have been to in the last 3 years. The major party MLAs from Molonglo are never present. Ministers & PR savvy shadows have the benefit of media recognition and profile and so can take re-election for granted.
Al has achieved a lot as advocate for his community through GCC. He is always assertive at the Planning & Development Forum. The vilification and hate campaign will now start. The electorate of Molonglo is the key to ACT Govt. as the election of Caroline showed in 2008.
PS I have no political party affiliations
The vilification and hate campaign will now start.
From who?
Chop71 said :
As long as he is aware that about a third of Molonglo is south of the lake…. He might have to take the “Gunner’s only” blinkers off for his new role, if successful!
Thumper said :
Shane and Caroline?
I was hoping Al would run as an independent Senate candidate at the next Federal Election.
Anyone know many Molonglo MLAs currently live on the northside v southside? Jeremy Hanson is one southsider i’m aware of, any others?
Maybe that’s why the interests of Woden-Weston Creek-Inner South often appear ignored in favour of Inner North and, to a lesser extent, Gungahlin
Gungahlin Al, if elected, would add to this spatial bias. The parties need to preselect more southsiders, or push for more logical electorate boundaries
He’s gone all quiet. Maybe he’s done a Mal Meninga…
You should try Federally Al, that would really get us some attention (and some pork barrelling)
The problem is that I would never in my life time vote Greens….
Having said that, better Al than yet another Green from the Inner North. He seems to have a broader perspective of the issues, unlike some of the others, whose world seems to stop at the city gates and does not extend to suburbia
Good luck to him. I just hope Canberrans know who to thank when they forget their shopping bags or haven’t got the right coin for a shopping trolley.
I’m going to have fun monstering him with ‘Yes but what will you do for the Inner North’ until the election. I’m not sure that he has adequate understanding of the pressing needs of people in O’Connor, Lyneham and Ainslie, which are part of Molonglo. Wonder if he’s going to change his name to Molonglo Al.
aussielyn said :
Are you kidding me or is this because “The Greens” claim not to be a normal political party but rather a movement?
There may be something to this, given the public defence by many Greens, including Assembly Speaker Rattenbury, of “direct” (ie criminal) action provided that it advances “the cause” (in Shane’s case I am, of course, thinking of the whipper-snippering of the CSIRO Research Station wheat crop, carried out by his Greenpeace colleagues).
Turning to Alan’s chances of election, these would obviously have been greatly enhanced if he had managed to get his way with the recent redistribution of electoral boundaries or if the ACT had single member electorates which would give a candidate strongly identified with a particular area a real shot at being elected.
As things stand, the longstanding gerrymander in favour of inner-Canberra interests (you only need a quota of 12.5% to get elected in latte land, compared to 16.67% in the boondocks). Joh Bjelke would be proud…
“Our slogan shall be: A rotten candidate for a rotten borough. Baldrick, I want you to go back to your kitchen sink, you see, and prepare for government.” – Blackadder
poetix said :
As a resadent (official spelling remember) of one of your listed suburbs can you please advise my what my pressing needs are?
buzz819 said :
So you pretty much keep an open mind when it comes to considering your options.
buzz819 said :
why? a sad indictment on civics education in this country, really. which keeps the duopoly of politics alive in this democracy…
why wouldn’t you vote for the best candidate to represent you? or are you blinded by your political affiliations to automatically naysay whatever anyone from another [perceived] affiliation might have to contribute?
buzz819 said :
Seconded.
Holden Caulfield said :
Cafes that allow kiddies, I think!
astrojax said :
Where did he say he wouldn’t vote for the best candidate to represent him? He said he wouldn’t vote for the Greens. Perhaps this is because he’s read the Green’s policies and is ideologically opposed to them?
Too bad he’s nominated for the Greens. I like his ideas, I don’t like the Greens ideas as a whole, though.