By Parker McKenzie
No Dandenong Ranges locals have been elected to the Upper House, but a minor party is set to be the big winner in the Legislative Council.
In Eastern Victoria, which covers Evelyn and Monbulk districts, The Liberal Party’s Renee Heath, Labor’s Tom McIntosh and Harriet Shing, Melinda Bath from the Nationals and the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers’ Jeff Bourman look set to be elected.
Former Eastern Victoria Liberal MP and Yarra Ranges Councillor Cathrine Burnett-Wake controversially lost the number one spot during pre-selection on the Liberal Party’s senate ticket to Ms Heath before the election, and Ms Heath has rejected suggestions her links to a conservative church in Gippsland could influence her decisions in parliament.
In the North Eastern Metropolitan Region, which covers the Bayswater electorate, Labor’s Shaun Leane and Sonja Terpstra are on track to win a seat in the Upper House and will likely be joined by Matthew Bach and Nick McGowan from the Liberal Party and the Greens’ Aiv Puglielli.
In Northern Victoria, where voters in the Eildon electorate had their say, the Liberal Party’s Wendy Lovell will be joined by Jaclyn Symes from the Labor Party, the Nationals Gaelle Broad, Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell from One Nation and the Animal Justice Party’s Georgia Purcell.
Statewide, the Labor Party is on track to lose three seats in the Legislative Council, potentially holding 15 of the 40 seats available. The result would mean that to pass its legislative agenda, the Labor Party must negotiate with the minor parties or the Liberal opposition.
The Liberal Party is set to gain three seats and have 14 members sitting in the Upper House, while the Greens are likely to gain two seats to now hold three.
The Legalise Cannabis Victoria Party can safely call itself the success story of the 2022 state election, looking likely to win three seats after previously holding zero.
The party built off a strong showing during the federal election, where it narrowly missed out on winning a seat in both Victoria and Queensland.
After the May 21 federal election, Legalise Cannabis Australia senate candidate for Victoria Elissa Smith, who ran during the state election in the seat of Pakenham, told the Star Mail on 25 May that the party was planning to heavily contest the state election after the positive result.
“We’re so excited about the response that we’ve got, but we need to follow that on and we need to build on that for the state campaign,” she said.
“We will be doing events in the lead-up to get people to understand what our policies are and why we want these changes to come through to the state election as well.”
The Liberal Democrats, Animal Justice Party, Shooters, Fishers and Farmers, Labour DLP and One Nation are each likely to have one seat in the Upper House.
