Upper Yarra residents will have the chance to hear from the candidates for Casey from the comfort of the Alpine Hotel in Warburton on Thursday 12 May.
The pub is located at 3340 Warburton Highway, Warburton and attendees will have the chance to get the low-down on their potential representatives from 7pm to 9pm.
The event was organised by a group of Warburton residents who got talking politics at the Alpine Hotel, and currently, Independent candidate Claire Ferres-Miles, Labor Candidate Bill Brindle, the Greens’ Jenny Game and United Australia Party’s Anthony Bellve have confirmed their attendance at the night.
One of the organisers, Greg McMahon, said Casey residents’ votes are really going to count for a lot after the retirement of former Liberal Mp Tony Smith, who had held the seat for 21 years.
“People could be forgiven for thinking, ‘it doesn’t really matter how I vote, my vote isn’t going to count’ whereas your vote is going to count this time,” he said.
“We just want to make sure that people get out there and are motivated and informed. I probably still don’t know who I’m going to vote for.”
All 11 candidates for the Casey electorate were invited, with the others consisting of the Liberal party’s Aaron Violi, Animal Justice Party’s Andrew Klop, One Nation’s Paul Murphy, Australia Federation Party’s Chris Field, Liberal Democrats’ Trevor Smith, Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party’s Peter Sullivan and Independent Craig Cole.
Mr McMahon went to the Meet the Candidates event in Healesville and said there were a few key electoral issues that came up.
“I probably went with preconceived ideas about what I thought people were going to say, and only one of those preconceived notions was confirmed, on the other three I was just totally blown away,” he said.
“I think the two glaring things that come through are climate change and integrity, and if you were asking me personally, I’d put integrity number one. Having a live experience for a couple of hours, you get to observe the person’s nature, their body language, and the way they respond.”
With Casey residents heading to the polls on Saturday 21 May, time is running out to put the candidates under the microscope and decide who will be the elected representative for Casey for the next term of government.
Mr McMahon says he hopes the event encourages more Warburton residents to actively vote in the election this year.
“The number of people voting in 2019 was a little bit reflective of Warburton in that there are some things that people just don’t participate in. One of our motivations is for people to be informed and have a say because it’s your future,” he said.
“There’s no use having a whinge and moan when things don’t go your way if you didn’t put your hand up.”
From the 2016 census and 2019 electoral data, approximately 45.8% of eligible voters in Warburton voted, and approximately only 41% of those votes were formal votes or completed correctly.
Residents are encouraged to enjoy a drink and/or meal, and politely bring the questions and concerns to ask candidates.
More information about the event can be found
Attendees can RSVP at this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p8pzh4w
More information can be found on the Community of Warburton Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Community-of-Warburton-105824355456840
