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Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
The traditional Liberal Party heartland that has turned red
The Labor Party now has a safe seat on Sydney 's wealthy north shore for the first time ever. Areas east of the Lane Cove River had traditionally been Liberal Party heartland, producing conservative premiers and prime ministers. Until the May 3 election, Labor had never held a federal electorate in this rich part of Sydney, and it had been more than four decades since the ALP held any state seat on the north shore. But that has now all changed with Labor getting resoundingly re-elected in Bennelong, even with new boundaries covering Chatswood, Lane Cove and Greenwich. This saw Jerome Laxale defeat his Liberal opponent Scott Yung, 59 per cent to 41 per cent, after scoring a nine per cent swing in his favour after preferences. Labor now has constituents that had previously been represented by four Liberal Party leaders during the past three decades. Even more surprisingly, Labor convincingly won upmarket polling booths that had traditionally been Liberal Party strongholds, with the two-party ALP vote in these leafy areas with water views well above the national average of 54.8 per cent. A Chatswood booth, west of the Pacific Highway, delivered Labor a landslide 65.2 per cent to 34.8 per cent margin, with Mr Laxale getting 45.9 per cent of the primary vote. Greenwich on the Lane Cove River was even more enthusiastic about Labor, with this booth voting for the ALP with a 69 per cent to 31 per cent margin, with Mr Laxale getting almost half or 49.6 per cent of first-preference votes. Lane Cove was almost just as pro-Labor, with Mr Laxale having 67.4 per cent of of the vote, compared with just 32.6 per cent for the Liberal Party. This area is far from working class, with Lane Cove now having a median house price of $3.1million, which is more than double greater Sydney's $1.5million mid-point, CoreLogic data showed. Former Lane Cove mayor Andrew Zbik, who in 2017 became the area's first Labor representative since 1947 when he was elected to council, said the ALP was no longer regarded as socialist on Sydney's north shore. 'We've proven at a local level that we're not the extreme socialists that their grandparents affiliated the Labor Party as going back to the Cold War,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'Labor was never a communist party but a lot of Liberal voters mistakenly thought that.' Mr Zbik, a financial planner, said Labor representation on the Lane Cove and Ryde council areas had helped turn traditionally Liberal Party areas red, boosting the political fortunes of Mr Laxale, a former Ryde mayor. Greenwich on the Lane Cove River was even more enthusiastic about Labor, with this booth voting for the ALP with a 69 per cent to 31 per cent margin, with Mr Laxale getting 49.6 per cent of first-preference votes 'We've definitely found at a local level, they're actually going, "You guys are quite sensible",' he said. 'I think that's where Jerome's built his profile as well - as local councillor, mayor, sensible, rational, makes good decisions; he's now the federal member for Bennelong. 'At the local level, we proved that you can trust voting Labor.' The lower north shore also has some of Australia's highest registration numbers for new Teslas. Mr Zbik said his council's embrace of charging stations for electric cars had proven popular with north shore voters, helping Labor win Bennelong as defeated Opposition Leader Peter Dutton pledged during the campaign to scrap EV tax breaks. 'Lane Cove council, about two years ago we had the most public charging infrastructure out of any council on the lower north shore,' he said. 'This is an area that government needs to help catch up on and very much an acute awareness that Australia is behind the world compared to Europe in particular on take-up of electric cars.' The abolition of the former Teal-held seat of North Sydney saw Bennelong redrawn to cover 1970s boundaries that were in place when future prime minister John Howard first ran as a federal Liberal candidate in 1974. The absence of a Teal candidate in Bennelong meant the left-wing vote went to Labor instead of the Liberal Party. 'I believe so and the minute the Liberals came out with a nuclear policy, my reading of that is they're not trying to win back these Teal seats,' Mr Zbik said. Until Labor's victory on Bennelong, on new boundaries, the Labor Party hadn't held a seat on Sydney's north shore at a state or federal level since 1981, after the ALP had won Willoughby for a term in 1978 during popular premier Neville Wran's landslide re-election. The federal seat of Bennelong overlaps with the Liberal state seat of Willoughby, previously held by former premier Gladys Berejiklian and Opposition Leader Peter Collins, and the state seat of Lane Cove, which Kerry Chikarovski held as state Liberal leader. With Mr Howard thrown in the mix, Labor now represents an area held by four Liberal Party leaders during the past three decades. While the betting markets had expected the Liberal Party to lose neighbouring Bradfield, Gisele Kapterian was leading her Teal opponent Nicolette Boele by 204 votes, having 50.1 per cent of the two-party vote on Thursday night.
ABC News
03-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Liberals retain handful of NSW seats as Labor, Teal vote surges in federal election
A red wave has washed over NSW leaving the state's Liberal Party at a crossroads and holding just a handful of seats in federal parliament. On Saturday night, Labor had recorded a 4.2 per cent swing and the ALP had 55.6 per cent of the two-party preferred vote in the state. The Liberal Party secured at least six seats and is in a tough battle for the heartland seat of Bradfield against the teal candidate. Read more about the federal election: Want even more? Here's where you can find all our 2025 Catch the latest interviews and in-depth coverage on Director of Sydney Policy Lab from the University of Sydney, Kate Harrison Brennan, said the Liberals "now have a lot to reflect on". "Some would say the moderates have lost and need to really be brought back into the fold," she said. Labor strengthened its position in the marginal seats it held coming into the election. Former prime minister Tony Abbott had called Bennelong hopeful Scott Yung his and "John Howard's candidate". ( ABC News ) Bennelong on Sydney's north shore, which was made a nominally Liberal seat by a redistribution, was retained by Jerome Laxale with a swing of 9.6 per cent to defeat Scott Yung, who is seen by many as a rising star of the Liberal Party. After winning Gilmore by just 373 votes in 2022, Labor managed to gain significant ground in the south coast seat to succeed again, with 55.6 per cent. Battle for Liberal heartland continues Independent candidate Nicolette Boele has so far edged ahead of the Liberal candidate in the blue ribbon seat of Bradfield. ( ABC News: Nick Dole ) Teal independent Nicolette Boele was ahead by a slim majority in the upper north shore seat of Bradfield, held by the Liberals since 1972. On Saturday night the seat was too close to call, with Ms Boele ahead with 50.5 per cent of the votes, while Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian, who replaced retiring member Paul Fletcher, securing 49.5 per cent. "We have proven there is no such thing as a safe seat," she told a crowd of supporters on Saturday night. A win for Ms Boele would be an upset in the blue ribbon seat, with ABC political analyst Antony Green saying Brafield was once "the great bastion of the Liberal party in northern Sydney". Teal independents held steady across Sydney electorates with incumbents Zali Steggall, Allegra Spender and Sophie Scamps retaining their seats after previously winning them from the Liberals. If Ms Boele were to win, there would be as many Teals in Greater Sydney as there are Liberals. Photo shows Man in a dark suits gives thumbs up sign in front of his own campaign poster. The NSW electorate of Robertson has maintained its status as the nation's longest-surviving bellwether seat. The Greens are currently leading Labor in Richmond on the state's far north coast, but is still too close to call with just over a third of the votes counted and preferences expected to play a huge role in the result. At Calare in the central west the current member, independent Andrew Gee, is ahead by 7.5 per cent. The mid north coast seat of Cowper is also still being watched closely with a margin of 2.2 per cent between independent candidate Caz Heise and the Nationals, who are currently ahead. 'Strength of community sentiment' in Western Sydney Labor's Sally Sitou also saw a significant swing in her Sydney seat. ( Supplied: Facebook ) Sydney's While Labor retained Werriwa in Sydney's outer south-west, with incumbent Anne Stanley securing what was a marginal seat coming into the election. Two independent candidates endorsed by The Muslim Vote movement in NSW were unable to secure seats, though their impact was noticeable in voting numbers, Tom Nance from Centre for Western Sydney told the ABC. The Muslim Vote had been promoting independent candidates who were more supportive of Palestinian rights, as well as preferencing Greens candidates high on the ballot paper. Labor's Jason Clare secured his seat of Blaxland. ( ABC News ) The movement had taken aim at the ALP's "failure to stand for justice on Gaza and Palestine". In Watson, independent Ziad Basyouny managed to secure approximately 16.4 per cent of votes by Saturday night, but the seat was easily won by Labor's long-time member Tony Burke. "I think the relatively strong showing when it comes to first preference votes [for Muslim Votes] is something that Labor will reflect on — looking at the strength of community sentiment," Mr Nance said. " It shows this is an issue that the community is taking seriously, rallying behind and it's important to them. " In the Labor heartland seat of Blaxland in Western Sydney, where The Muslim Vote endorsed its other NSW candidate, Labor's Jason Clare secured a strong 64.2 per cent of the vote with an 1.2 per cent swing. When he was asked about the criticisms against Labor's stance on Gaza, he said that he recognised the issue was very personal for his electorate. "We can't stop the war that is happening but we can call for it to end … and we can help the people of Gaza that have come here," he said at a polling booth earlier on Saturday, The Muslim Vote candidate, Ahmed Ouf, had secured 22.7 per cent of the vote on Saturday night. Independent Dai Le is on track to secure the seat of Fowler. ( ABC News ) In Fowler, independent Dai Le was on track to retain the south-western Sydney seat she won off Labor with a slim majority at the last election. Ms Le had secured 51.6 per cent of the votes by 10pm on Saturday, ahead of Labor's Tu Le on 48.2 per cent. At the 2022 election Tu Le was dumped from contesting the seat after former premier Kristina Keneally was parachuted in. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese conceded early in the campaign they had made a mistake in overlooking the Vietnamese-Australian lawyer. Mr Nance said Ms Keneally's run had been "a slap in the face to the people of Fowler". "With hindsight Labor if they had their time again probably would have run Tu Le three years ago and had quite a margin to play with."
Sydney Morning Herald
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
Federal election 2025 LIVE updates: Polls open in Australia's eastern states as Albanese eyes three terms; Dutton predicts close race
Key posts 10.11am Scott Yung casts vote, dodges Brethren question 9.25am 'Vote for the other guy': US TikToker after Libs block him 8.33am Liberals kick MP's mum out of party 8.14am What have you seen at the polls? 8.07am How to make your vote count 8.00am Voting opens in eastern states 7.49am Brethren asked to place and guard Coalition signs 7.14am Dutton predicts close election, speaks of antisemitism Hide key posts Go to latest What have you seen at the polls? By Nick Newling As voters flock to the polls, and run the gauntlet of volunteers armed with how-to-vote cards, we want to hear from you. Had the best democracy sausage of your life? Waiting in an extraordinarily long line? Seen something that doesn't seem quite right? Let us know below. 10.32am 'We've never held on to Bennelong': Laxale By Penry Buckley Back in the marginal north Sydney seat of Bennelong, incumbent Labor MP Jerome Laxale has voted at Denistone East Public School, where he has been supported by Minister for Emergency Management Jenny McAllister. Speaking to this masthead, Laxale admitted the race in NSW's most marginal seat was close. 'We've never held onto Bennelong. History is not on our side, so we need to make history today, and we'll go right up until six o'clock.' Asked whether reports earlier this week that his father Alain had made homophobic comments at a pre-polling station had hurt his campaign in the crucial final stretch, Laxale said: 'We'll see what happens.' 'We've been really focusing on cost of living and housing locally here … my dad regrets what he said, and he's very apologetic, and we'll move on from that.' 10.21am What you're seeing at the booths By Anthony Segaert Earlier this morning we asked for information on the vibe at your voting booth, and, crucially, information about the baked goods on offer. Here's what a few of you are reporting: 'Good vibes and typical Aussie politeness. Volunteers from across the spectrum sharing coffee and snacks.' '$2 chocolate crackle that was undersized and clearly overpriced. Hands down the best day on the calendar. How lucky are we!!' 'Lewisham Public School has an excellent bake stall, democracy sausage and gorgeous plants and flowers for sale.' 'WAY too many corflutes from [the] Liberal Party plastered across Parramatta electorate. Outrageous quantities never seen before!' Tell us what you're seeing at your booth via the box below: 10.11am Scott Yung casts vote, dodges Brethren question By Penry Buckley Liberal challenger Scott Yung has cast his vote in the north Sydney marginal seat of Bennelong, refusing to say whether any of his volunteers at a northern suburbs polling place were members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church. It was revealed on Monday that the group formerly known as the Exclusive Brethren sent hundreds of its members to pre-polling booths in marginal seats while instructing them to keep secret that they were members of the controversial religion. The Coalition has denied it has any agreement with the Brethren. This masthead counted about 20 Liberal volunteers at Eastwood Public School, outnumbering volunteers for incumbent Labor MP Jerome Laxale by around four to one. Asked whether any of the Liberal volunteers were members of the group, Yung would not say. 'I think it's in everyone's right to participate in Australia's democracy,' he said. The interview with this masthead was ended by Yung's campaign when the question was asked again. Yung also addressed several potentially damaging media reports about his campaign, including in relation to financial disclosures. 'I respect what the media does, and I'll continue to respect that, but can I just say that Labor has run a smear campaign against me.' 10.10am Long lines for polls and sausages in Melbourne By Sophie Aubrey Voters are in for a long wait before they get their democracy sausage at Saint Ignatius Church Hall in the Melbourne electorate of Richmond. The line is snaking around the grounds, and some electors are reporting having waited between 45 and 60 minutes — a lot longer than usual for a pre-9am arrival. Several people turned around and gave up when they saw the line. Brooke Pendergast is at the back of the queue with partner Jack Smith when she tells us she's a bit worried about how long she will be waiting. 'I'm thinking I should have eaten first,' she says. South Yarra Library is reporting a one-hour wait, while the Docklands booth is more than an hour. At least the weather is on our side today. 10.07am Tony Abbott supports Scott Yung in Bennelong By Penry Buckley Back at Eastwood Public School in the north Sydney electorate of Bennelong, former prime minister Tony Abbott has come out to support Liberal challenger Scott Yung. After a redistribution last year, the seat has moved closer to the boundaries it had when former prime minister John Howard was first elected to it in 1974, but it remains a battleground seat, with an estimated 0.04 per cent margin in favour of Yung. 'I don't want to speculate on demographic trends, redistributions or anything like that, I just think that Peter Dutton has done well to appeal a broad cross-section of Australians,' said Abbott. Yung's campaign has been the subject of several potentially damaging reports, including in relation to campaign finance disclosures. Abbott said he didn't think the reports would hurt Yung's chances. 'I think he's answered them very effectively - it's all a lot of beltway bubble stuff.' 10.04am PM makes quick visit to Menzies Albanese has made a lightning visit to Menzies – a Melbourne electorate named after the Liberal Party's first prime minister, Robert Menzies. The electorate is held by one of the Liberal Party's leading moderates, Keith Wolahan, but is a marginal Labor seat on a 0.4 per cent margin after the most recent changes to electoral boundaries. Albanese was joined by local Labor candidate Gabriel Ng, who is hoping to unseat Wolahan from the well-heeled electorate in a continuation of the fall of Liberal incumbents from seats such as Goldstein, Kooyong, Warringah and Curtin at the last election. In contrast to several of Albanese's recent polling-booth appearances, this morning's visit at Kerrimuir Primary School was relatively positive and subdued. 'Thanks for participating in democracy,' Albanese said to Liberal volunteers, while greeting excited voters and Labor volunteers. 10.01am Former AFL star hopes to unseat Adam Bandt By Sophie Aubrey We just caught up with one of the more surprising Melbourne electorate candidates, Anthony 'Kouta' Koutoufides, offering flyers outside the polling station at St Ignatius Church Hall in Richmond. The former AFL star turned political hopeful is preferencing the Liberals before Labor, with the Greens last. (The seat is held by Greens leader Adam Bandt.) Koutoufides said he hadn't thought much about the preference strategy because he had left it to his team. Rather, his ambition was to win. The candidate got a taste for politics when he made a tilt at Melbourne's lord mayor position last year, placing fourth in the race. 'I think I ran a really good campaign my first time ever going into politics,' he says. 'I believe I can help … a lot of businesses are struggling and safety and cost of living are a problem.' 9.54am In pictures: Albanese at the MCG The prime minister kicked off election day at the MCG. Here are some pictures. 9.51am Inner Melbourne voters facing 90-minute wait at polling booth By Ashleigh McMillan Melbourne's election early birds have been served up a worm of sorts – a long, snaking polling booth line with a wait of 1½ hours. Voters who arrived at The District shopping centre in Docklands, immediately west of Melbourne's CBD, were told they would have to stand in line for at least 90 minutes on Saturday morning. Older voters and people with access issues were whisked to the front of the line. Some voters told this masthead they wouldn't bother lining up at Docklands and would go 'vote in the suburbs' later today – but not before snagging a democracy sausage on the way out. Access to polling booths near the Melbourne CBD has been a hot topic in the dying days of the campaign. Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece slammed the lack of pre-poll venues in the city's centre as 'baffling' and 'undemocratic' earlier this week. The Australian Electoral Commission returned serve, blaming the council and accusing it of failing to help it secure suitable venues. 9.47am Tu Le casts vote in Fowler By Kayla Olaya At Bossley Park Public School in Sydney's south-west, the Labor challenger for the seat of Fowler, Tu Le, is doing something unorthodox: casting her vote on election day. The tradition that sees politicians vote in front of both their constituents and the media in a bid to show off their part in the democratic process, has somehow become a rarity. At least with the south-west Sydney pollies. Incumbent MP for Fowler Dai Le, alongside Jason Clare, Tony Burke and their independent challengers, have all voted before election day. Tu Le was surprised other politicians weren't casting a vote today like her, as she voted surrounded by her husband and two kids, including a newborn baby, in the booths.
The Age
02-05-2025
- Politics
- The Age
Federal election 2025: Bennelong Liberal candidate Scott Yung volunteer group leader linked to CCP
Opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer Even as the Coalition attacks Labor on national security, it is seeking to win back Chinese voters after the diaspora deserted then-prime minister Scott Morrison en masse for Labor at the 2022 election following his government's pandemic-era feud with Beijing. In Bennelong, a must-win seat for both sides, Liberal candidate Scott Yung has distanced himself from Morrison and emphasised his close ties to the Chinese community. But screenshots obtained by this masthead show Yan Zehua, a former executive vice president of the Australian Association for the Promotion of the Peaceful Reunification of China, is described as the 'leader' of a chat group for volunteers supporting Liberal candidate Scott Yung. The association is the only organisation that the Australian government has officially listed as being 'a foreign government related entity' under the foreign influence transparency scheme. It was once headed by Huang Xiangmo, the controversial Chinese political donor who was exiled from Australia after security agencies expressed concerns. Yan, who was pictured posing with Yung near an early voting centre late last month, declined to answer questions but said he was no longer vice president of the AAPPRC, which advocates for the democratic island of Taiwan to reunite with the rest of China under Communist control. Liberal candidate Scott Yung meeting voters in Bennelong on Tuesday. Credit: Edwina Pickles He would not say when he stood down from the position, which he is listed as holding as recently as 2023 on press releases of other organisations. Yan is part of a group on the Chinese social media app called 'Scott Campaign Volunteer Group-2'. The group's description says the 'leader of this group of volunteers is President Yan', noting he is the president of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce who 'fully supports Scott in this federal election'. 'Becoming a campaign volunteer not only helps Scott, but also helps like-minded friends improve themselves, enhance their awareness of political participation and sense of community belonging,' the group description states. 'Let us gather together to fulfil our mission, jointly support this meaningful campaign, and write our glorious chapter together!' After Yung and the Liberal Party were contacted for comment, a campaign spokesman said: 'Yan is a local constituent who is campaigning against Labor and Jerome Laxale. Scott has no further relationship with Yan. Yan has sometimes supported Labor in the past.' Yung is not a member of the WeChat group, which numbers 32 people, but his mother, Karen Yueqi, is. Courting a wary diaspora After the Liberals' poor performance with the community in 2022, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton changed his rhetoric. 'I'm pro-China and the relationship that we have with them,' Dutton told 2GB in June last year. 'We need to make sure we strengthen the trading relationship [with China] because there are many businesses here who rely on it.' The Liberal Party's post-election review in 2022 had found that on average, the two-party-preferred swing to Labor in the top 15 seats by Chinese ancestry was 6.6 per cent, compared to 3.7 per cent in other seats. It concluded that, after Chinese voters marked down the Coalition government for criticising China over its handling of COVID-19 and diplomatic ties all but ceased, the Liberal party must make repairing its 'relationship with the Chinese community must … a priority during this term of Parliament'. Shannon Ting is voting Greens. Credit: Edwina Pickles Research published by the University of Technology China Relations Institute found that while the Coalition had 'revived more combative rhetoric' recently, the preceding three years had been marked by a 'more muted, bipartisan consensus' around China. 'This shift is aimed at reassuring the business community that the Coalition is cognisant and appreciative of trade ties, while also regaining the support of Australian-Chinese voters,' author Elena Collinson concluded. Labor, for its part, downplayed concerns about Chinese navy ships circumnavigating Australia earlier this year and used measured language to address military tension, such as when a Chinese fighter jet deployed flares near an Australian air force plane in February. Charlie Chork, a big admirer of John Howard, is voting Liberal. Credit: Edwina Pickles Charlie Chork, a furniture store owner in Bennelong who emigrated from China 35 years ago, said he believed in the Liberal Party. Yung 'got experience from John Howard, and they did quite a good job,' Chork said. 'So that's why I just voted for Scott.' The party is keen to capitalise on Howard's good reputation, with signs picturing Yung and the former prime minister together. 'I support Scott Yung. He is our future,' they read in English and Chinese. Labor wants to make it hard for Bennelong Liberals to move on from Morrison. 'If Morrison lets you down, Dutton will be worse. Support Scott Yung. Support Dutton,' read Labor Party signs in Mandarin. Shannon Ting, 25, said there was a 'very big gap between the older generation and the younger generation.' Ting said she voted for the Greens because her primary concerns were climate change and Medicare. Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter.
The Guardian
01-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
NSW reports of alleged election-related violence and harassment include smearing poo on truck with Liberal ad
New South Wales police have launched multiple investigations in the last week into alleged violence, intimidation, harassment and antisocial behaviour related to the election, including the smearing of poo across a truck carrying an ad for the Liberal party. Political parties have also reported arson threats against campaign offices and alleged attempts to intimidate diaspora communities into voting for their candidate by referencing historical figures linked in crimes against humanity in Afghanistan. The misconduct and alleged criminal behaviour has led the electoral commissioner, Jeff Pope, to condemn 'isolated instances of aggression, intimidation and potential violence near prepoll venues [that] are not in keeping with Australian democratic values'. Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter In the NSW electorate of Eden-Monaro, a Liberal party volunteer was horrified to find a truck with a campaign ad attacking Labor's policy on vehicle emission standards smeared with poo, including on door handles. A NSW Police spokesperson confirmed it has launched an investigation into the alleged 'intentional damage'. A Coalition office in Eden-Monaro received a hand-written letter on Sunday warning: 'If this office opens again it will be burnt to the ground!!!! Fuck you'. A Liberal party spokesperson said local staff were urged to take the matter seriously. Police confirmed it is now being investigated. In the ultra-marginal seat of Bennelong in Sydney, a video seen by Guardian Australia shows a man kicking, throwing and removing Liberal signs for its candidate, Scott Yung. The man is also filmed screaming abuse at Liberal volunteers before pointing a finger at one and pursuing him. A NSW police spokesperson confirmed a 30-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday afternoon, hours after the incident. He was subsequently charged with intimidation and granted conditional bail. In the Hunter region seat of Paterson, a Labor-held marginal, the Liberals have alleged a man shoulder-charged one of its volunteers at a polling station. The incident occurred on Monday afternoon. A police spokesperson confirmed an investigation has been launched into the alleged assault. The Liberal candidate in the seat of Grayndler, held by Anthony Albanese, has had his campaign corflutes spray-painted with swastikas. Earlier this month, Greens corflutes were also defaced with swastikas. A video uploaded to Facebook on Thursday afternoon showed a Trumpet of Patriots volunteer being kicked and punched by a man wearing a bike helmet. The man's identity is not known, but the video shows him raising frustrations about the party's ads and its immigration policies. On Thursday a Greens volunteer in the seat of Kooyong, Eliza, told Guardian Australia a Liberal volunteer forcefully grabbed her arm during a disagreement about where to place campaign signs. Labor has also referred its own allegations of wrongdoing to authorities for investigation. The party has raised concerns about the alleged 'disturbing and intimidatory behaviour' of Liberal volunteers in the Victorian seat of Bruce. Sign up to Afternoon Update: Election 2025 Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key election campaign stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion A letter sent to the commission on Thursday alleges one Liberal volunteer referenced the name of the former emir of Afghanistan Abdur Rahman Khan in exchanges with Pashtun and Hazara Australian voters. Bruce has one of the largest Afghan diasporas in Australia. Labor alleges the volunteer told people that a vote for anyone other than the Liberals would betray Khan, and called for him to be 'brought back'. Khan is linked to the Hazara genocide in the late 1800s. 'I am concerned that the reason Liberal volunteers are invoking Abdur Rahman Khan's name is to harass and intimidate members of the local Hazara community,' said the letter to the commission from Jett Fogarty, an Australian Labor party official. Pope said that campaign activities are a very important part of the federal election process, but 'lawful activities are a must, and respectful behaviour is a firm expectation'. 'The AEC is not a police force and does not have jurisdiction to undertake conflict resolution or get in the middle of a dispute outside our polling places,' Pope said. 'However, we do have close relationships with local police forces around the country who are closely monitoring activities. 'In some areas, the AEC has written to candidates and branches of registered political parties to alert them to the reports being received and to remind everyone of the right for voters to have a comfortable voting experience.'
