The ABC has the risible news that the former GetUp! frontman Simon Sheikh wants to run Green for an ACT Senate Seat.
He thinks Liberal Senator Gary Humphries’ seat is vulnerable.
I really don’t see Gary’s core constituency flocking to Simon Sheikh.
UPDATE 23/10/12 09:32: The Liberals’ Eric Abetz is taking this as a gotcha moment:
“Simon Sheik’s tilt for Greens preselection for the ACT Senate again puts the lie to GetUp’s claims to be independent.”
“Moreover, while the Liberal Party has never taken public support for granted, the Greens’ constant inflation of their chances of gaining an ACT Senator is particularly hard to swallow given the collapse in their vote on Saturday,” Liberal Senate Leader, Eric Abetz said today.
Senator Abetz described GetUp! as a partisan left wing union front which uses people’s concern about issues to funnel their vote towards Labor and the Greens.
“At the 2010 federal election GetUp mustered a massive, deceptive campaign in the ACT for the benefit of the Greens, to unseat Gary Humphries, but to no avail.”
“GetUp’s ‘scorecard’ gave the Greens ‘the tick’ on every issue and in the ACT a Greens boothworker was photographed blatantly putting up GetUp! material.”
“Simon Sheik’s bid for Greens pre-selection simply ‘bells the cat’ and it will be fascinating, should he see off Lin Hatfield Dodds or any other contender, to see GetUp! explain supporting Sheik while simultaneously claiming to be ‘independent’.”