Teal independents
Teal independents | |
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Ideology | |
House of Representatives | 7 / 151
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Senate | 1 / 76
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State/territory lower houses | 2 / 455
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State/territory upper houses | 0 / 155
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Teal independents, simply known as teals and also called community independents, are a loosely-aligned group of
The eponymous colour teal, which has been interpreted by some journalists as a blend of the blue of the Liberal Party and a green signifying green politics,[1][2] was a dominant feature of campaign branding used by high-profile independent candidates Zali Steggall, Allegra Spender, Monique Ryan, Kate Chaney, Zoe Daniel and Sophie Scamps;[3][4] however, not all candidates used the colour.
History
2013–2019
The teal movement originates with constituents of the
In 2017, Sandy Bolton was elected as the member for the state electorate of Noosa, running on a platform of climate change and local issues. She was re-elected in 2020.[9]
By 2018, support for the traditional major groupings, the
Prior the
Before the 2019 election, a series of community groups, most prominently Vote Tony Out and Voices of Warringah, formed with the intention to eject former prime minister
On
Post-2020
The
Climate 200 was revived ahead of the 2022 election by Holmes à Court, to "try to level the playing field for independents once more".[18] Holmes à Court had veteran campaigner Anthony Reid and Byron Fay, a Paris Agreement negotiator who would later become CEO of Climate 200, run a review into Climate 200's first iteration, for the 2019 election, before re-creating it.[31]
Influenced by the corresponding groups in Indi and Warringah, a number of
In the 2022 Willoughby state by-election, Larissa Penn, who had already ran in 2019, gained 29.66% (or 46.70% in TCP). She has been counted as a teal candidate.[43][44] In NSW, despite the success of teal independents in 2022 in Sydney, only one teal independent was elected, Judy Hannan in Wollondilly, likely due to optional preferential voting in New South Wales.[45]
Structure
Teal independents are largely female candidates challenging Liberal Party incumbent MPs. Ten candidates for the House of Representatives and one candidate for the Senate considered teal independents were elected in 2022, of which seven were elected for the first time.[46]
Most teal independent candidates have received the support of fundraising group Climate 200, a political funding company led by Simon Holmes à Court.[46] Founded shortly before the 2019 election, Climate 200 gave $437,000 to 12 independents at the 2019 election, deriving from 35 donors, including Holmes à Court and Cannon-Brookes.[18]
Teal independents have been categorised in the media by financial and administrative associations with
In addition to financial support from fundraising organisations such as Climate 200, candidates raised significant amounts of money directly through their personal fundraising arms.[49][50][51]
Colour
At the 2019 election and subsequently at the 2022 election, a number of the high-profile candidates in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth used teal colours in their campaign, including Zali Steggall, Allegra Spender, Monique Ryan, Kate Chaney, Zoe Daniel and Sophie Scamps.[3][4] This led to many using this colour to describe the whole movement by calling them the "teal independents" and calling the independent victories on election night a "teal wave" and "teal bath".[52]
Other candidates associated with teal independents did not use teal, such as successful candidate Kylea Tink (pink).[53]
The selection of the colour teal, a mix of blue and green, alludes to both the Liberal (blue) electorates they run in, and "green" policies.[1][2]
Policies
The teal independents have been described as varying from centre-left to centre-right in political orientation, with Kate Chaney and Allegra Spender both descending from former Liberal ministers, and Monique Ryan being a former member of the centre-left Labor Party.[54] Others, such as Zoe Daniel and Helen Haines, have been described as centrist.[55] Generally, teal independents have been described as having progressive social policies, with a focus on climate change, anti-corruption policies and gender equality, while still retaining conservative economics similar to those of the Liberals.[56] Some, such as David Pocock, focus on environmentalism, however others, such as Spender, emphasise economic policy.[54]
In the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum, teal independents were key campaigners for the Yes campaign, competing in a friendly competition to see who could achieve the highest Yes vote in their electorate.[57] Although the referendum was decisively defeated with 60% of voters voting No, all seats held by teal independents, bar Haines' regional seat of Indi, voted Yes.[58]
Reception
Political law professor Graeme Orr describes the movement as a "nascent political movement", sharing resources and strategies across seats, and with similar policy focuses on climate change, government integrity and gender equality.[59]
A number of former politicians on the advisory council of Climate 200 endorsed the teal independents, including
Due to the impact and significance of the teal independents, "teal" was announced as "word of the year" by the Australian National Dictionary Centre.[63][64] The teals, as well as Pocock and Haines, were shortlisted for the Emerging Political Leader of the Year 2022 by the McKinnon Prize, which Haines won.[65]
Criticism and opposition
Because many teal independents contested the 2022 election in seats that were generally considered to be Liberal Party strongholds, multiple incumbent and former Liberal politicians were highly critical of the movement in the months prior: Christopher Pyne accused the teal independents of deliberately seeking to consign the Liberal Party to long-term opposition by targeting moderate centrist voters;[66] Josh Frydenberg and Tim Wilson, who were both directly opposed by teal independent candidates, criticised the movement's open association with Climate 200 and called them "fake independents" and "so-called independents";[67][68] and Morrison argued that sending teal independents to the federal parliament would have a negative impact on Australia's political stability.[59] Former Prime Minister John Howard criticized the teal independents, calling them "anti-Liberal groupies"[69] and stating that they are "...posing as independents".[69]
Independent MP
Results
2020 Queensland state election
Candidate | Division | Incumbent MP | Incumbent party | % 1st pref. | % 2CP | Elected | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Claire Richardson[71] | Oodgeroo | Mark Robinson | Liberal National | 21.48% | – | ||
Sandy Bolton[72] | Noosa | Sandy Bolton | Independent | 43.92% | 65.85% |
2022 federal election
Incumbents listed in italics did not re-contest their seats.
† denotes an incumbent MP
Candidate | State | Division | Incumbent MP | Incumbent party | % 1st pref. | % 2CP | Elected | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jo Dyer | SA | Boothby | Nicolle Flint | Liberal | 6.54% | — | ||
Nicolette Boele | NSW | Bradfield | Paul Fletcher | Liberal | 20.89% | 45.77% | ||
Kate Hook | NSW | Calare | Andrew Gee | National | 20.40% | 40.32% | ||
Claire Ferres Miles | Vic | Casey | Tony Smith | Liberal | 8.34% | — | ||
Caz Heise | NSW | Cowper | Pat Conaghan | National | 26.26% | 47.68% | ||
Kate Chaney | WA | Curtin | Celia Hammond | Liberal | 29.46% | 51.26% | ||
Despi O'Connor | Vic | Flinders | Greg Hunt | Liberal | 7.24% | — | ||
Zoe Daniel | Vic | Goldstein | Tim Wilson | Liberal | 34.47% | 52.87% | ||
Liz Habermann | SA | Grey | Rowan Ramsey | Liberal | 11.26% | — | ||
Georgia Steele | NSW | Hughes | Craig Kelly | United Australia
|
14.33% | — | ||
Monique Ryan | Vic | Kooyong | Josh Frydenberg | Liberal | 40.29% | 52.94% | ||
Sophie Scamps | NSW | Mackellar | Jason Falinski | Liberal | 38.11% | 52.50% | ||
Kylea Tink | NSW | North Sydney | Trent Zimmerman | Liberal | 25.20% | 52.92% | ||
Hanabeth Luke | NSW | Page | Kevin Hogan | National | 13.13% | — | ||
Alex Dyson | Vic | Wannon | Dan Tehan | Liberal | 19.29% | 46.08% | ||
Zali Steggall† | NSW | Warringah | Zali Steggall | Independent | 44.82% | 60.96% | ||
Allegra Spender | NSW | Wentworth | Dave Sharma | Liberal | 35.77% | 54.20% |
Candidate | State | % 1st pref. | Elected |
---|---|---|---|
David Pocock | ACT | 21.18% | |
Kim Rubenstein | ACT | 4.43% | |
Leanne Minshull | Tas | 1.44% |
2022 Victorian state election
Candidate | District | Incumbent MP | Incumbent party | % 1st pref. | % 2CP | Elected | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sarah Fenton | Bellarine | Lisa Neville | Labor
|
4.58% | — | ||
Jacqui Hawkins | Benambra | Bill Tilley | Liberal | 31.70% | 49.06% | ||
Felicity Frederico | Brighton | James Newbury | Liberal | 9.10% | — | ||
Nomi Kaltmann | Caulfield | David Southwick | Liberal | 6.50% | — | ||
Melissa Lowe | Hawthorn | John Kennedy
|
Labor
|
19.98% | — | ||
Sophie Torney | Kew | Tim Smith | Liberal | 21.10% | — | ||
Kate Lardner | Mornington | David Morris | Liberal | 22.42% | 49.30% | ||
Clarke Martin | Sandringham | Brad Rowswell | Liberal | 6.91% | — |
2023 NSW state election
Candidate | Division | Incumbent MP | Incumbent party | % 1st pref. | % 2CP | Elected | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victoria Davidson | Lane Cove | Anthony Roberts | Liberal | 20.38% | — | ||
Joeline Hackman | Manly | James Griffin | Liberal | 27.19% | 45.15% | ||
Helen Conway | North Shore | Felicity Wilson | Liberal | 21.85% | 44.31% | ||
Jacqui Scruby | Pittwater | Rob Stokes | Liberal | 35.86% | 49.34% | ||
Karen Freyer | Vaucluse | Gabrielle Upton | Liberal | 17.06% | 37.12% | ||
Judith Hannan[1] | Wollondilly | Nathaniel Smith | Liberal | 25.94% | 51.52% |
Candidate | % 1st pref. | Elected |
---|---|---|
Elizabeth Farrelly | 46,737 |
See also
- Liberals for Forests (2001–2008)
- Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy Australia (2007–2010)
- Independents for Canberra
- Condorcet winner criterion
- Green Liberalism
- Malcolm Turnbull
- Teal Deal, a hypothetical New Zealand Green–National alliance in the mid 2000s
- Voices groups in Australia
Notes
References
Citations
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- ^ a b c Elder, John (14 September 2013). "Ironies abound in the battle for Indi". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- ^ Cassidy, Barrie (12 September 2013). "The story of how Cathy McGowan stormed Indi". ABC News. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- ^ "Sophie Mirabella concedes defeat in Indi". ABC News. 17 September 2013. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
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- ^ a b Wood, Danielle; Daley, John (12 March 2018). "A crisis of trust: The rise of protest politics in Australia". Grattan Institute. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
- ^ Turner 2022, p. 58-59.
- ^ Turner 2022, p. 60.
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- ^ a b c d Turner 2022, p. 63.
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- ^ Turner 2022, p. 28.
- ^ Turner 2022, p. 32.
- ^ Turner 2022, p. 63-64.
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- ^ Godde, Rachael Ward and Callum (25 August 2022). "Ex-mayor to contest Vic election in teal". Goulburn Post. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
- ^ Smethurst, Annika; Sakkal, Paul (16 August 2022). "'Teal' candidate poised to take on Liberals in state seat of Caulfield". The Age. Archived from the original on 8 January 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
- ^ "Victoria Election 2022 Results". abc.net.au. Archived from the original on 28 January 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
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- ^ McGowan, Michael (9 June 2022). "Group that helped unseat a federal Liberal MP sets their sights on NSW election". Guardian Australia. Archived from the original on 10 June 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
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- ^ "Climate 200 supported candidates". www.climate200.com.au. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
- ^ "David Pocock officially becomes the ACT's first independent senator, unseating Zed Seselja". ABC News. 14 June 2022. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ "Teal independents: who are they and how did they upend Australia's election?". the Guardian. 23 May 2022. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ "Who are the 'teal independents'? Your questions answered about the candidates fighting for some of Australia's wealthiest electorates". MSN. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ "'Level' the playing field. Teal independents spent millions to win Liberal seats". ABC News. 7 November 2022. Archived from the original on 6 January 2024. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
- ^ "The 'teal bath' of independents heading to parliament". ABC News. 21 May 2022. Archived from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ "The teal wave: Meet the women who took on the Liberal Party and won". The New Daily. 21 May 2022. Archived from the original on 22 May 2022. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
- ^ a b "Fifty shades of teal". Pursuit. 18 May 2022. Archived from the original on 10 June 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
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- ^ December 2021 | #auspol, Ian Macphee | 1; #ausvotes; #GoldsteinVotes; #IndependentsDay; Page, Front; Macphee, Ian; Jansson | 1, Wayne (1 December 2021). "ESSAY: Former #GoldsteinVotes moderate Liberal MP Ian Macphee makes the case for Daniel". No Fibs Independents Day. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ View, The Age's (13 May 2022). "Who's afraid of the independents?". The Age. Archived from the original on 16 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ Power, Julie (22 November 2022). "The colour of change: How teal became Australia's word of the year". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 24 November 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
- ^ "Australia's Word of the Year is a colourful nod to the teal wave of independents that swept the federal election". MSN. Archived from the original on 24 November 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
- ^ "The 2022 Prize". McKinnon Prize. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- ^ Pyne, Christopher (8 May 2022). "What the 'teal independents' are really doing". The Advertiser. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ "Tim Wilson is getting hysterical". The AIM Network. 13 December 2021. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
- ^ Nethery, Amy. "Why teal independents are seeking Liberal voters and spooking Liberal MPs". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ a b Knott, Matthew (23 April 2022). "'Anti-Liberal groupies': John Howard blasts 'teal' independents". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 10 June 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
- ^ "Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone and Fowler MP Dai Le to form Western Sydney-focused 'anti-teals' party". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 27 May 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
- from the original on 1 May 2023. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Sandy Bolton, Queensland's first teal independent, on what the new guard can expect". ABC News. Archived from the original on 30 April 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
- ^ "Climate 200-backed candidate tipped to win NSW election seat moves to distance herself from 'teal' label". ABC News. 28 March 2023. Archived from the original on 28 March 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
Bibliography
- Turner, Brook (2022), Independents' Day, Allen & Unwin, ISBN 978-1-7611-8579-3