Socialists polled well in the Newcastle council elections on September 9. Steve O鈥橞rien, Samantha Ashby and Gayle Dedman won 891 votes (4.13%) in Ward 1.
Their vote was more than 4% in five of the 13 booths, with the highest being in Newcastle East at 7.5%. O鈥橞rien also won 2.10%, or 1909 votes, for Lord Mayor.
The 鈥淐ommunity need not developer greed鈥 platform resonated in a context where Labor boasted it would help developers, ignoring the impact on communities.
There was a 6% swing against the Liberal Party in the Inner West Council (IWC) election in Sydney on September 9.
This was a common pattern, reflected in other local elections also conducted then for councils that were forcibly amalgamated by the NSW Liberal government last year.
IWC is the product of the forced amalgamation of the former Ashfield, Marrickville and Leichhardt Council.
1. We are community activists
We won鈥檛 just represent, we will help empower communities by working alongside others against WestConnex, for marriage equality, for sustainability and public housing and by fighting for a local council that is more democratic, transparent and accountable to the community. Socialist councillors in Victoria and West Australia were critical to defeating the East-West Link and Roe 8 motorway projects.
2. Organise to take on corporate greed
础叠颁鈥檚 Four Corners recent report 鈥淭rashed: The dirty truth about your rubbish鈥 highlighted a crisis in Australia鈥檚 recycling and waste disposal. The report implicated local councils, the Environmental Protection Agency and state and federal governments in the dodgy but highly profitable illegal dumping industry.
Companies built around the core business of illegal dumping are making millions of dollars in profits while local councils are losing thousands of dollars in waste levies.
Last week was Homelessness Week. It was also the week when the 76 homeless people sleeping in Martin Place were removed聽by the NSW Coalition government.
Sydney City Council has, at least, defended the 鈥渢ent city鈥 and taken a more pro-active role in trying to find solutions, compared with the NSW government which simply wants to wash its hands of this enormous problem.
It is now less than one week until the Moreland City Council election.
at the early polling centre in the suburb of Fawkner, you can sense the level of community recognition for the socialist councillor. When a group of school kids and their teacher were looking for a public toilet at the playground adjacent to the polling centre, one of them suggested I 鈥済et Sue Bolton onto it鈥.
Socialist Alliance member, Sue Bolton, is in the City of Moreland. Polling day is October 22.
Socialist Alliance WA co-convenor Sam Wainwright was re-elected to the Fremantle council on October 19. In the other wards, progressive councillors defeated conservative opponents, and Mayor Brad Pettitt was also returned. Wainwright won 58% of the vote in his ward compared to 33% at the 2009 poll. Wainwright's absolute vote also increased from 438 votes to 602 this year.