It is Wednesday afternoon, and in David Pocock’s campaign office, in the back of his Turner house, his staffers are keeping a close eye on the election count. “They’re up to 73 per cent!” If the numbers are right, the former rugby giant could become the ACT’s first independent senator.
The ABC has already declared Mr Pocock is “likely” to gain the seat, although Liberal incumbent Zed Seselja maintains he still has the lead.
“I’m certainly not claiming victory just yet, but it is historic for the Territories,” Mr Pocock said. “I feel honoured that people are willing to put their trust in me to represent them.”
Mr Pocock came to fame as a world-class rugby player, including as captain of the Wallabies and vice-captain of the Brumbies, before retiring in 2020 to devote himself to conservation. His sporting experience, he believes, taught him how to work with people with different backgrounds, beliefs, and politics on a common goal – in politics, achieving good outcomes for Australians.
“Should I be the Senator, I’m there to represent all of the ACT, and I’m committed to listening and genuinely wanting to represent everyone,” Mr Pocock said.
“I’ve got a commitment to be accessible and accountable, and to try to really represent a community I love on all the issues that are so important to us and have a real impact on our day-to-day lives.”
According to current results, Mr Pocock has 21.0 per cent of the primary vote, and Zed Seselja has 25.3 per cent – but preferences from other parties are expected to give Mr Pocock victory: 80 to 85 per cent of second preferences from the Greens (10 per cent of the primary vote) and Kim Rubenstein (4.3 per cent), and 20 to 30 per cent from the United Australia Party (2.1 per cent), his team says.
Mr Pocock’s platform – making politics about people again, community representation, and integrity – appealed to Canberrans from across the political spectrum. He had enormous public support, and more than 2,000 volunteers – many involved in politics for the first time.
On Saturday, a couple of United Australia volunteers even took off their UAP gear, donned David Pocock T-shirts, and handed out how to vote cards for ‘Team Pocock’, he said.
“I wouldn’t have run if I didn’t think I could win,” Mr Pocock said. “There was a clear pathway there, but it’s never been done before.
“I think it’s a testament to the amazing volunteer team we had, who harnessed that support, activated people, got them involved, and created an environment where it was genuine fun.
“Now, should I get the second Senate spot in the ACT, it will be another kind of challenge to deliver, which is exciting.”
Mr Pocock ascribes the positive response to several factors: “People in Canberra feel like we’re taken for granted as a safe seat. Being frustrated with the incumbent, and his voting record not standing up for Canberra. The excitement of actually seeing a policy platform that was based on what Canberrans want. A commitment to do things differently, an opportunity for people to get involved.”
The public, he said, were sick of big issues like climate and integrity, housing affordability and the cost of living, and women’s safety being politicised.
“They expect politicians to get on with solving these problems.”
Mr Pocock said his first action as Senator would be a bill on Territory rights, giving the Legislative Assembly the right to legislate on voluntary assisted dying.
“The vast majority of people in the ACT support this; I think it’s overdue,” he said. “It makes no sense in 2022 that the Territory doesn’t have the same rights as states… This is about not treating Australians who live in the Territories as second-class citizens.”
During the election, Advance Australia, a conservative lobby group with (according to the ABC) ties to people close to Zed Seselja, accused Mr Pocock, a passionate conservationist and environmental activist, of being a closet Green.
Mr Pocock co-founded FrontRunners, a movement for environmentally-minded athletes; led the Cool Down campaign of nearly 500 athletes calling on the government to stop climate change; and was arrested in 2014 for chaining himself to a digger to protest the Maules Creek mine in northwest NSW.
Advance Australia’s smear campaign backfired; Facebook comments showed that for many progressive Canberrans, Mr Pocock’s environmental stance was a reason to vote for, not against, him.
He wants the Australian Electoral Commission to prosecute Advance Australia for breaching electoral law, and has called for federal laws against lying in electoral campaigns – a long-standing cause.
“I’ve put my name to open letters for a number of years, calling for truth in political advertising laws at federal level. … It should not be up to the voter to look at an ad, and try to work out if that’s a lie or not.
“The Advance Australia stuff is exactly the kind of politics and campaigning that we’re so sick of – fearmongering and trying to drag your opponent down, rather than actually talking about the ideas, rather than pointing to your voting record and what you delivered.”
Although not a Green, Mr Pocock will push for ecological issues. In fact, he was inspired to stand for the Senate after attending COP26 in Glasgow last year, on behalf of his Zimbabwean restorative agriculture project. There, he saw “how out of step Australia is with the international community and our key trading partners”.
“We are being left behind. If you listen to scientists, Australia is the developed country that will suffer the most from climate inaction, and will benefit the most from strong climate action and policies. This is a massive economic opportunity for us.”
Mr Pocock backs independent MP Zali Steggall’s proposed 60 per cent reduction in greenhouse emissions by 2030 – more than Labor’s 43 per cent target, which he doesn’t consider ambitious enough.
He wants a pragmatic policy to deal with climate change that also delivers savings to households and ensures a smooth transition for regional Australians who rely on fossil fuels for jobs.
“We have to find a way forward that doesn’t reignite the climate wars,” he insists.
While Labor has said they are committed to opening new coal and gas mines, Mr Pocock is more concerned around fossil fuel subsidies, which reached $11.6 billion this financial year. For almost the same amount, $12 billion over five years, the government could help every household in Australia electrify and then save $5,000 every year, according to Dr Saul Griffith and Rewiring Australia.
“The dividends from that make a lot more sense to me, given a big chunk will be reinvested in communities around Australia.”
Canberra could lead the way, Mr Pocock believes; he proposes creating the world’s first fully electrified suburb, ‘Suburb Zero’, and then fully electrifying the ACT, making it the hub of an Australia-wide National Electrification Program.
Australia, he says, has some of the cheapest rooftop solar in the world, thanks to John Howard’s government. Mr Pocock believes batteries, heat pumps, and electric vehicles could be equally cheap, benefitting both the environment and the economy; an electrified economy would create thousands of jobs for tradies and save the public money.
“It’s a huge challenge, but such an opportunity for us as a country.”
The housing crisis is another burning issue. “People with full-time jobs are spending half their income on rent; people with jobs are living in cars. It’s clearly not working.”
If he is elected, he would hold Labor to its election promise of a national housing supply and affordability council, and he wants the housing minister in cabinet.
He also wants the Commonwealth to wipe the ACT’s $115 million housing debt, as Tasmania and South Australia’s have been.
“We’re going to spend $33 million on interest over the next decade. That doesn’t make sense to me, given the huge shortfall in social housing here in the ACT.”
From sportsman to Senator – Mr Pocock has a sporting chance.
Canberra Daily contacted Zed Seselja’s office today to see if he wanted to make a statement about the election, and was referred to his Facebook post of Sunday morning.
“Last night’s results were disappointing for the Liberal Party across the nation.
“I congratulate the Labor Party as the incoming Government on their election victory.
“In the ACT, as we saw in other Liberal seats across the country, we faced an extremely well-funded and targeted Climate 200 campaign for the Senate seat. These coordinated campaigns resulted in the loss of many traditionally safe Liberal seats. It also delivered a swing against Liberal and Labor in the ACT Senate race, though the exact nature of that swing is unknown, as there is much counting to come.
“At this stage it is too early to determine a result for the second ACT Senate seat. Much of the vote is yet to be counted, including significant numbers of pre-poll and postal ballots, which traditionally provide a boost to the Liberal count.
“Whatever the result may be, I am proud of the campaign we ran in the ACT. We ran on positive policies that would deliver tangible benefits to Canberrans, including the release of 2,000 blocks of land for new homes in the ACT, more support for first home buyers, continuing to invest record amounts in Canberra and building on a strong record of economic growth and investment in national security.
“I want to pay my respects to outgoing Prime Minister Scott Morrison. History will remember Prime Minister Morrison and his legacy much better than the way Labor and much of the media portrays him. When he led the Coalition to victory in 2019, he saved the nation from Bill Shorten’s $387 billion in new taxes. Then in 2020, Scott steered Australia through its greatest peacetime crisis since the Great Depression. Australia has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. Our economy is strong. Our unemployment rate is down to 3.9%, the lowest level in nearly 50 years.
“That said, now is the time to reflect on why we lost Government including the loss of many traditional supporters which saw our primary vote drop to historic lows.
“Finally, thank you to the many dedicated volunteers and supporters who drove this campaign, manning pre-poll booths, volunteering on election day, making donations, and carrying out all of the countless tasks behind the scenes that make a campaign possible. We left everything out of the field, and I couldn’t have done it without the strong support of an amazing team.
“And to my family, my wife Ros, and our children Michael, Tommy, William, Olivia and Grace. Campaigns are always particularly difficult for the families of candidates, and this election has been no different – thank you.”
