Liberals are 'unlikely to run' in Batman by-election: Turnbull
SBS News Febuary 5 2018

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull doesn't expect the Liberals will run in the Batman by-election, a move likely to make it easier for the Greens to win the seat.   


Labor looks set for a tougher fight in the by-election in the Melbourne seat of Batman after Malcolm Turnbull indicated the Liberals were unlikely to put up a candidate.

The by-election, expected to be in March, was triggered by the resignation of Labor MP David Feeney after he failed to find paperwork showing he had renounced UK citizenship before entering parliament, disqualifying him under the constitution.

Former ACTU president Ged Kearney is Labor's new candidate for the inner-city electorate.



Greens candidate Alex Bhathal has run in each election for the seat since 2001, barring 2007.

She won the primary vote at the last federal election but Mr Feeney clung on courtesy of Liberal preferences, taking Batman with a margin of one per cent.

Mr Turnbull said the final decision on running a candidate would be up to the Victorian branch of the Liberal Party.

"But I don't expect we will be running a candidate in the Batman by-election," the prime minister told ABC TV on Sunday.

Asked why, Mr Turnbull said it was a political decision and "parties have to assess priorities and the limited resources".

ABC election analyst Antony Green said if the Liberals didn't run a candidate, the Greens were more likely to win the poll - which would give the minor party its second lower house seat and dent Opposition Leader Bill Shorten's numbers.   

Senior Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese - who has experience fighting off Greens in an inner-city electorate - believes the party can retain the seat.

"We need to put our case to the people of Batman (that) the election of a Labor candidate will be an important step in Labor forming government either later this year or early next year," he told Sky News.

Makes sense to me parties often don't run in by-elections they have no hope in.

All I can say they should make the winner wear a mask and cape

Bam wrote on Feb 6^th, 2018 at 2:27pm:


I doubt that that is why they're not running. It is correct that the Greens do better when the Libs don't run (though not really sure why) but I would just bet that they don't care who wins it. A vote for Labor is a vote for the Greens and vice versa.

What will be really interesting though is if Labor also has to go to two different by-elections; one here and one in Longman. Will Shirten change his rhetoric based on the audience? Do we get a different narrative in inner-city Melbourne to the one in average swing-voting Brisbane suburbia?

crocodile wrote on Feb 6^th, 2018 at 8:14am:


Michael Kroger was quoted as saying the libs shouldn't be responsible for allowing "extremists" to win - obviously referring to the Greens. Labor would have a much better chance if they did run.

matty wrote on Feb 6^th, 2018 at 3:01pm:


I get where you are coming from I vote in the lower house by starting with the greens last then ALP.
If it was a choice between ALP and greens it would be ALP.
Obviously many must really hate the ALP.

I have always lived in rusted on LNP seats.

Remember we're talking about Victoria here, where 51% couldn't make up their minds on the non-issue of including Aboriginals who fought with settlers in ANZAC Day.....



Amazing - the Libs and the Labs give each other preferences so as to prevent any revolution... I hold no brief for the Greens in any way - just as bad if you ask me and silly at times - but you can smell the fear of The Government Of Two Parties (Tag Team) when they stoop to this kind of thing.

Ban preferences?

RightSaidFred wrote on Feb 7^th, 2018 at 10:40am:

We need reforms to put democracy back into the hands of the people. Ban HTV cards. Abolish above-the-line voting in the Senate. Introduce Robson rotation for all ballot papers. As much as possible, make candidates work for your vote.