By Parker McKenzie
Aaron Violi has been elected as the new member for Casey, despite the Liberal Party failing to return to government.
The Liberal candidate to replace Tony Smith has won the May 21 contest by a slim margin, leading Labor’s Bill Brindle by 1.5 per cent with 72.2 per cent of votes counted. When counting is completed, it is likely to be the closest election since 1987.
Mr Violi said he would work hard to represent all residents in the electorate, not only those who voted for him.
“It is humbling to think that the people of Casey have, having trusted me to represent our communities,” he said.
“I understand firsthand that Casey is a unique and special electorate. We’ve got urban areas, we’ve got farmland, we’ve got regional areas, we’ve got the Dandenongs and we’ve got many brilliant and unique communities within those townships.”
Labor candidate Bill Brindle briefly lead Mr Violi early in the vote counting, however, as more votes came the Liberal Candidate built a lead to 4 points once preferences were counted, 52 per cent to Mr Brindle’s 48 per cent.
Mr Violi Mr Brindle called him on Sunday night to congratulate him on his electoral victory.
“I got a call from Bill last night congratulating me, which was nice to receive and testament to Bilk as a person, he is a man of integrity and character,” Mr Violi said.
“There is a little bit of counting to go, but I’m feeling confident based on the trend of postal votes that I’ll be the next member of Casey. It’s really exciting to have the opportunity to serve the community.”
Mr Violi’s lead shrunk slightly, although the flow of preferences and postal votes saw him elected as the first new MP in Casey since Mr Smith won his maiden Casey election in 2001.
Mr Violi said he would like to wait before making any conclusions on why the Liberal Party was defeated by Labor.
“I’m a big believer in data and numbers coming from a business background. I want to see here in Casey and across the nation a little bit more data of where votes have gone and where they’ve ended up,” he said.
“We clearly need to take some time to reflect, review and understand what’s happened and map a path forward here in Victoria and nationally as a Liberal Party.”
Mr Violi said he would continue to advocate for projects he announced federal funding for throughout the campaign, with a focus on the mental-health hub in Lilydale as a priority need for the community.
“I passionately believe in all the commitments that I made because they’re what the community told me they were looking for,” he said.
“I worked closely with many organisations but also importantly Yarra Ranges Council. All of those commitments were on their advocacy list and they know our local area.”
In the nearby electorate of Aston, Liberal MP and former Minister for Education Alan Tudge has been re-elected by a smaller margin than in 2019; 52.7 per cent of TPP votes to Labor candidate Mary Doyle’s 47.3 per cent with 70.5 per cent of votes counted.
