Seat of the week: Corangamite
Corangamite has covered a shifting area around Colac 150 kilometres west of Melbourne since its creation at federation, its complexion changing somewhat with the absorption of the Geelong suburbs of South Barwon and Belmont in 1955. It was one of Labor’s two gains in Victoria when Kevin Rudd came to power in 2007, giving Labor its first win in the seat since the Great Depression. In its current form the electorate includes the Geelong suburbs south-west of the Barwon River and the Great Ocean Road as far as Apollo Bay, together with rural areas to the west and north. The Geelong suburbs, which include Liberal-leaning Highton and marginal Belmont and Grovedale, contain a little over a third of the electorate’s voters, and are distinguished (along with Torquay) by a younger demographic profile and a preponderance of mortgage payers. Growth in Geelong, Torquay and the Bellarine Peninsula left the seat over quota at the redistribution to take effect at the next election, resulting in the transfer of most of the Bellarine Peninsula (accounting for about 5700 voters) to Corio. This has had a negligible impact on the Labor margin, which on Antony Green’s calculation goes from 0.4% to 0.3%.
Labor’s only wins in Corangamite prior to 2007 were in 1910, when future Prime Minister Jim Scullin became member for a term (he would return as member for the inner Melbourne seat of Yarra in 1922), and at the 1929 election when Scullin’s short-lived government came to power. The Country Party held the seat for one term from 1931, after which it was held by the United Australia Party and then the Liberal Party. The enlargement of parliament in 1984 cost the electorate its most conservative rural territory in the west, but it took another 23 years before Labor was able to realise its hopes of gaining the seat. It was assisted to this end by the “sea change” phenomenon, the ABC TV series of that name having been set in the electorate at Barwon Heads. This has drained about 10% from the Liberal primary vote in the Great Ocean Road towns since the early 1990s, with the Greens vote there burgeoning to 17% at the 2010 election.
Corangamite was held from 1984 to 2007 by Stewart McArthur, who to the dismay of some in the Liberal Party sought another term in 2007 at the age of 70. His Labor challenger was 31-year-old Darren Cheeseman, an official with the Left faction Community and Public Sector Union who won a hotly contested preselection over Peter McMullin, the Right-backed mayor of Geelong and candidate from 2004. Cheeseman went on to overwhelm McArthur’s 5.3% margin with a 6.2% swing that was evenly distributed throughout the electorate. Faced at the 2010 election by a fresh Liberal candidate in Sarah Henderson, a former state host of The 7.30 Report and daughter of former state MP Ann Henderson, Cheeseman was brought within 771 votes of defeat by a 0.4% swing that went slightly against the trend of a 1.0% statewide swing to Labor. Cheeseman went on to receive substantial publicity in February 2012 when he declared Labor would be “decimated” if Julia Gillard led it to the election, which set the ball rolling on Kevin Rudd’s unsuccessful leadership challenge a week later.
Sarah Henderson will again represent the Liberals at the next election after winning a fiercely contested struggle for Liberal preselection against Rod Nockles, an internet security expert and former Peter Costello staffer who also sought preselection in 2010. Henderson’s backers reportedly included Tony Abbott and Michael Kroger, with Nockles having support from Peter Costello, Andrew Robb, Senators Arthur Sinodinos and Scott Ryan and Higgins MP Kelly O’Dwyer. In the event, Henderson won a surprisingly easy victory with an absolute majority on the first round.
Categories: Federal Election 2013, Federal Politics 2010-
Crikey Whitey
It’s all part of life. Make sure she comes out of it with adequate child support and a good property settlement.
Fair dinkum and gays want to get married
It is a funny world!
I’ve got an escape clause on my relationship, I had to give away all innapropriate female friendships
but if my punting suffers, I’m back on the chase 
by Centre on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:26 pm
Frankie V.
Apologies if my post was overly long. I just felt that Fran Barlow’s earlier post deserved a detailed response.
I haven’t drunk the Kool-Aid and I realise that there are many criticisms that can be made of this and previous ALP governments and leaders.
My point was that the ALP has achieved a great deal of positive reform in the last 100 years. A point that Fran was too churlish to acknowledge.
by Jolyon Wagg on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:26 pm
Psyclaw:
A bit of advice. Bookmark what you said today, and be prepared to bring it out next time he comes back. And the time after that, and so on. He’ll be back, and he just tends to repeat whatever he’s said before, as if it’s never come up previously. He’s good at ignoring anything he doesn’t want to talk about. And he’s persistent. Loves to sidetrack too. So you have to pin him down to precise points and don’t let go. As you did today.
Or you can do what I do nowadays. I just ignore him. A few weeks ago he made a deal with me to answer a question I put to him, as long as I answered one he put to me. I held up my end of the deal, he wandered off. So I’m done with him.
by Aguirre on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:27 pm
Dee
Scary stuff. Do they know what it is. In Brisbane I will panic for me and my kids. Ahhhhh!!!!!!
by daretotread on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:27 pm
victoria,
Thanks, very sad. A footballer friend of ours went into have an arthroscopy on his knee, all routine, but caught some superbug, and for a time thought they would have to amputate above the knee, but managed to save it by pumping huge amounts of drugs through him but warned him that none were likely to work, he was just lucky, I guess.
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:31 pm
dee
That is truly dreadful.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:31 pm
cw
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:32 pm
Hello. I’m very old, so could someone please direct me to the post where Mod Lib apologises for blaming Kevin Rudd for drowning people?
Could you also direct me to the post where Mod Lib says he was wrong to say that the Pacific Non-Solution stopped all people from drowning?
by ShowsOn on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:35 pm
Dee – has Newman cut hospital staff? or is he going to? If there’s a new super bug around he’ll need to keep hospitals well staffed.
A new ad for Labor could be that the BOF, Newman & Baillieu have cut more jobs than Fed Labor or the carbon price will.
by BH on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:35 pm
Aguirre
I am sick of dealing with that 40 yr stat rubbish. A bare calculation of the means and Bingo!, we have a pronouncement!
There is no consideration for example of other influences, e.g. that maybe Australians vote Left during hard times (merde, we need someone to care out us!) and Right when things are going well (give us some that smurfing money!).
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:39 pm
Puff,
I wanted to thank you for that link. Very useful.
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:40 pm
Shows On,
You are, apparently, three years younger than my dad (with whom I shall be celebrating our joint birthday v soon), so how is it that you are so much more bewildered than he?
Be assured, of course, of my utmost sympathy for your condition.
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:41 pm
BH
My OH spent the good part of six months in hospital with MRSA.
Everytime he goes into hospital he gets an infection.
by Dee on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:41 pm
DTT
Makes you want to move to a cave in the outback.
by Dee on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:44 pm
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:44 pm
SK
Sometimes it is luck of the draw
by victoria on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:45 pm
Well it is like this. You wake up one day and it is like, let’s say a Saturday, and then that day goes OK, but then the next day you wake up and it is like, let’s say a Sunday, and you do your best on that day and hopefully it turns out OK, but then, following that day you wake up and it is like Monday, and they are normally OK so you have a decent day, but after that you wake up and it is like Tuesday and those are OK normally – unless it rains – but then after that you go to bed and wake up and it is Wednesday and you just try to do the best you can with what you’ve got, so you go to bed and then it is like Thursday and that is reasonably alright for an old bloke if you don’t mind, so then you go to bed and the next day is usually a Friday and they seem to come and go because then you can look forward to the weekend and then after that day is often Saturday and RIGHT THERE YOU ARE BACK TO SQUARE ONE AND YOU HAVEN”T MOVED ON OR PROGRESSED AT ALL BECAUSE AFTER THAT IS SATURDAY.
Do you know what I mean?
by ShowsOn on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:47 pm
That is ok. I hoped you did not mind. Also, did you notice where it said it may be cheaper to reinforce walls in the build, in anticipation of hand rails in the bathroom/toilet when needed, than retrofitting?
I also suggest that if some one puts in the design one of those one inch drops in the floor level (like I have between the bathroom/toilet and hallway floors wtf?) tell them to get out their pencil and fix it.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:47 pm
1167 for SK.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:48 pm
Dee,
Any time my dad goes into hospital (too often, now) my mum takes him his food – apart from breakfast when he is restricted to yoghurt and banana (difficult to infect).
She is an angel, but not the only one by a long way.
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:48 pm
Shows
Congratulations on your 90th birthday.
My word, time flies as you get older doesn’t it?
by Dan Gulberry on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:50 pm
Dee- I remember you told us about your OH and it’s not just the stress for him but the toll on yourself is hard as well. I won’t dare tell our friend tho. He’s heard of so many lately that he wants to spend the rest of his life (20-30 yrs) with a bung shoulder.
Imagine if you lived in the US without Medicare and couldn’t afford to stay in the hospital. It’s too awful to contemplate.
by BH on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:50 pm
Shows On,
Am I communicating with a reincarnation of Pooh? (As in Winnie-ther…?)
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:51 pm
showson
Actually I do know what you mean. I describe it as the days going slowly and the years going quickly.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:51 pm
Yeah, I’ve been through that one. If you change the figure to 36 years, some of those stats turn around. 40 is a very handy figure for him.
Look, he’s smart, he’s deft with his debating skills, he’s got this clever little conversational way to bring you into the argument. And in his own way, he can be quite reasonable. But it’s still a colossal waste of time entering into debate with him.
I get a kick out of his plan for bringing about a moderate liberal government. Ask him about that next time he’s around.
by Aguirre on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Puff,
I’m going to take it with me when we next visit the architect. It will prove useful as this will be our last home.
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:53 pm
Moderate + Liberal + Government?
Ouch! My keyboard just bit me.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:55 pm
Space Kidette,
Good move. Also – is it single storey?
Ours isn’t, and I’m now having to remind the nearly 70 yo OH that things aren’t quite what he could do when we acquired this place.
It hasn’t sunk in – yet …
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 10:57 pm
Can’t stay awake til the sky falls. I’m orf to bed. Happy Carbonageddon, Bludgers.
by BH on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:00 pm
Back to my earlier.
Thank you. Empathy does flow, and thank you again.
Yet this is not about me, I am just so angered and helpless to change it, and so annoyed that he is behaving in this way. No excuses, maybe, but this is so weird. He is a highly intelligent person who had a serious head injury car thing before he met my sis and which we all previously have discussed.
He has been told and he perceives that his capacities are diminishing. Which leaves him so far something well above average.
But he has just tossed in his job, embarked upon this change, not telling sis of his intentions until she questioned him about certain behaviours, he will leave for Hawaii, he is a US citizen, where it is warmer (!) jobless, leaving sis seriously out of pocket, given this and that.
Centre at 1150
“It’s all part of life. Make sure she comes out of it with adequate child support and a good property settlement”
It her child, her house. Let us hope that it does not turn into any sort of litigation, let alone one in which she has to defend her ownership.
by crikey whitey on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:01 pm
BH
Me too!
Night!
by Dee on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:03 pm
Fiona,
Single story. I have had two stories since day dot but our house is too big and it has become the centre of our life in the maintenance way. We want a house we can relax in, that cleaning is a breeze. We want a house that serves us not a house we live in service to.
I guess in short we’re trading in a house for a home. I have three males in my house and while it is all I could ever dream of it is draining too much of our time and doesn’t really suit who we’ve become.
We are outdoors heaps, even at home. But our house has become an anchor in terms of time needed to clean it.
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:03 pm
BH,
Sweet dreams. x
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:04 pm
Dee,
Good night x
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:05 pm
Who is on WhyallaWipeout watch tonight?
#carbongeddon is quite busy.
by This little black duck on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:08 pm
Ducky,
I have been on official Whyalla watch for the last three weeks.
My last post:
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:10 pm
SK,
I wish that I had had your courage 30 years ago.
Enjoy the new, and make those males of yours well-acquainted with cleaning equipment!
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:10 pm
TLBD,
Kin I do Wyallah Wotch in me dreams?
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:11 pm
fiona,
They are as allergic to the cleaning equipment as I am!
by Space Kidette on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:12 pm
Congrats on being 90. Anyone who has lived so years and retained their faculties is among the chronologically gifted!
by Atticus on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:13 pm
And still no sign of the python, maybe Tone was being metaphorical when he spoke of the giant python, an allusion to what he goes through each night, wrestling the python as they call it in boarding school.
by castle on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:14 pm
fiona,
Virtually!
by This little black duck on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:17 pm
SK
You might want to check that the architect knows about adaptable housing design and that Ageing in Place stuff Bill Shorten is on about.
Many architects, from what I gather, did not get much on accessible design in their courses.
A couple of my friends are Access Auditors. They tell the building/architect companies what national access standards should be in their designs for public buildings, and often this is advice is ignored. Which is good for their little business because soon after they are auditing the brand new development and telling them what to fix to comply with the codes.
I was with her when my friend did the entrance to a brand new multimill$$ building. Where is the braille panel by the lift, what is the front counter doing at standing height only, why are the round things at the bottom of the steps (to tell a low vision person there are steps coming up) made of metal? “What does that does matter?” I said. “Guide dogs won’t walk on them on 40c days.” Oh.
Well, she told them that when she looked at the plans, so it was a matter of, “dig them up and put the right ones in before you get a complaint lodged by someone who can’t get in your building”, in corporate speak of course.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:17 pm
ABC has had picture of Tone and his pledge on infrastructure on its front page most of the day.
In the interests of balance which they so much harp on about they should point out that the only infrastructure done in the Howie years was the useless rail line from Adelaide to Alice. A massive tax boom of hundreds of billions and that is all the libs left behind.
by castle on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:19 pm
Duckie
I wouldn’t miss it for the world. And I am watching the Tour de France.
by Puff, the Magic Dragon. on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:19 pm
Puff,
Shorter: Wotif they asked someone who knows???
by fiona on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:20 pm
Re staph infections et al …. Dee and others
________________
About 12 years ago I developed a series of reddish blotches on my left leg then they spread to other parts of my body
The doctor made a wrong diagnosis and thought it an allergy and for some weeks gave me the wrong treatment I became alarmed at it’s spread and got a referal to
a skin specialist who …on the spot …correctly diagnosed it as a staph infection WOW
I had to take 2 seperate kinds of ant-bio capsules ever 6 hours and did so for for about 6 months…it’s a very slow recovery.. but I was otherwise OK
It eventually subsided but as I have two total knee-reconstructions I have to be careful of any cuts or bruising in the lower legs..where the infection is hard to treat
I am still on anti-bio medication for a small bruise I got 18 months ago,,,and may do so forever I suspect
I have learned to watch for it and just have to live with it
I must have got it in the first place working in the garden…of which I do a lot… or somewhere else at home
I have been told that one of the most effective treatment for small cuts which might become a problem(as once happened with a scratch from our cat)is to use a simple cream…Betadine,,which one can get from any chemist..and I find it helps check any infection quickly
I have also been advised that I should use Betadine with a tiny smear of honey
There is a whole range of honey treatments for such cuts etc….the best is Manuka
Honey(NZ) It’s quite expensive …about $20 for a jar of the strongest stuff…but with the Betadine…very effective(don’t waste it on your toast)..and get it at the chemist or a health food shop..it is widely used now
by deblonay on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:20 pm
Brett Lancaster (Aus) just set the fastest time in the Prologue. Big guns yet to come.
by This little black duck on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:21 pm
Puff,
Me too!
by This little black duck on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:21 pm
Spacey,
Margueritas are off. Just poured my first glass of a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.
You know what Ford Prefect told Dent Arthur Dent about keeping up the alcohol when the Vogons are coming!
by This little black duck on Jun 30, 2012 at 11:24 pm