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A 100-year-old woman gets up the energy to hand out cards for Get Up, a Labor-Liberal marriage, passionate views from all sides, and more … the Bay Post/Moruya Examiner is there as Gilmore votes.
Voting today? Send us your pics. Email community.eurobodalla@fairfaxmedia.com.au
If there is anyone older than Jean Reid handing out how-to-vote cards today, the Bay Post/Moruya Examiner would love to hear.
Walking frame or not, the 100-year-old got up the energy to hand out how-to-vote cards for Get Up for two hours on Saturday morning, July 2.
Jean scored her century in November last year, and was at the polling booth at Tomakin Community Hall with daughter, Joani Reid, because they wanted “a healthy planet and healthy people”.
Joanie declared it a “lovely atmosphere”
Cast your vote until 6pm at Tomakin Community Hall, Ainslie Parade, Tomakin.
Casting her vote early on Saturday in Batemans Bay was Gilmore Liberal MP Ann Sudmalis, who is up against Labor’s Fiona Phillips.
She said she was feeling confident.
Ms Sudmalis said she believed the message that “we need a strong economy to fund health and education” was getting through.
“What we are trying to do is get a good economy so you can get a job and keep it,” she said.
“That resonates with young people.”
Ms Phillips was spending polling day at Gilmore booths in the Shoalhaven.
It is lucky Maureen and Martin Daniels, of Surfside, share a much-loved puppy, because they certainly do not share political persuasions.
The happily married pair agree to disagree, as they told the Bay Post after filling in strikingly different ballot papers at Batemans Bay Community Centre.
Maureen is from heartland Labour stock, descended from a family who called Sydney’s Surry Hills home when it was a thoroughly working class address.
“It is family tradition,” she said.
“It has been Labor territory all their lives. I don’t think Malcolm Turnbull is in touch with people.”
She said traditional Labor values still mattered in 2016. She had changed Martin’s mind on some things, but not politics.
“We have just adopted a new puppy – he didn’t want one, now he does,” she said.
Martin said disagreements did not get too heated.
“We talk it out,” he said.
“We both have our points of view. I prefer the Liberal mandate for trying to take the country forward on an economic scale. I think they will make the money, hopefully, to make us all better off.”
Do any of their five children vote for The Greens, just to add to the family rainbow?
“They are so diverse,” Maureen said.
“I have one in the building industry who is probably a Labor man, through and through, and a daughter is that. The other three?They might put a smiley face on the box for all I know.”
Cast your vote at Batemans Bay Community Centre, near the Water Garden, until 6pm.
Also on the polling line outside the Batemans Bay Community Centre was Joslyn van der Moolen, for The Greens.
The Bay Post asked if spending a long day outside a polling booth with members of other political parties resulted in unlikely friendships by the end of the day.
“I believe we all care about our community, so we are all here to make the most of people’s vote to get the best we can,” Ms van der Moolen said.
“Everyone who is here volunteering is committed. They are interested in the political system and in making a difference.”
Ms van der Moolen might not feel enmity, but the class struggle burned strongly for Labor’s Peter Coggan, at least when the Bay Post tape was rolling.
“We are quite joyous this morning, a brilliant day,” Mr Coggan said.
“Labor is traditionally the party that looks after the people of Australia; children, young working people, middle-aged people and the elderly.”
Can he and members of the Liberal Party standing just a few feet away have discussions that don’t end up nasty?
“We do, but they are quite defensive and they go on the attack and they tell lies about us,” Mr Coggan said.
“We have the policies and they have the debt and this country needs Labor back in power and the people of Australia will be much better off. We value the resources of Australia, the children, the Coalition does not.”
Caryl Haslem said she liked to keep it friendly on the front line.
Were the Liberals telling lies about Mr Coggan?
“No, I just ignore him,” Mrs Haslem said.
Was there no chance friendship could build across a few metres of pavement over the course of the day?
“He makes it difficult,” Mrs Haslem said.
“We are always friendly and in pre-poll for two weeks, I always used to shake hands with my opposition before I started and introduce myself. If people make it difficult, it is difficult to make friendships.”
The pair however, happily shared a square metre of pavement to have their picture taken.
Liberal John Harper said he drew a distinction between “politics and people”.
“As people, we can be friends and have a laugh and a joke and talk about the weather and how cold we are, but politically we have our own views, very strong views. We are not liars.”
Mr Coggan was having none of it.
He could not imagine Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Labor leader Bill Shorten sharing a pleasant social event.
“I would not think so; there would be nothing worse then having an after-election party and having Liberals in the room. It would destroy the party atmosphere.
“Conditions have been won for the workers by the labour movement. The Liberals are about enslaving the workers. We can protect the borders better than the Liberals and we are about people.”
The Bay Post will be back at 5.30pm to see if relations have improved.
Finding it easier to cross the line down the pavement and find common ground outside the polling booth were Green Lisa Forward and Mrs Haslem.
They appeared to reach some rapport in conversation about award rates for young people.
“I had a young woman staying with me, she was 18, and she was getting $13.25 an hour and two years ago this had been 70 cents more,” Ms Forward said.
The girl had no agreed number of minimum hours and “she took a sick day and they stopped the contract, with no notice.”
“Caryl was saying she owns small business and she has taken care of her workers and that is wonderful.
“She is obviously a nice person, but when this is happening and young people are going into work ... I ended up paying the bond for this young woman to get into a house, because how was she going to accumulate enough money to have the independence she needed?”
Mrs Haslem said award conditions should be adhered to.
“I think we joined up in the end,” she said of the conversation.
“I was saying the (Department of) Fair Trading people have a set of awards for juniors and seniors,” Mrs Haslem said.
“I know this well, because of all the businesses I have been involved in. That is the law and that is what should be abided by and if it is not, then something needs to be done. If the kids are frightened to do it because they might lose their job, then someone outside should do it.”
Liberal supporters Robbie Law and Peter Henderson braved the Tomakin cold from 7am to prepare for the day of truth in the long-running Federal Election campaign.
Mr Law said he enjoyed meeting people from other parties.
“We all get on well because it for a common cause, even though we are on different sides,” he said.