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By-Election Special - Indigenous Party takes on Fadden. July 2023 Newsletter.
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![By-Election Special - Indigenous Party takes on Fadden. July 2023 Newsletter.]() |
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IAPA Newsletter July 2023.
Fadden By-election Special.
Dear IAPA Members all over the continent,
We hope you have been enjoying the contributions from our young people in the last couple of Newsletters. Thank you for the interesting and supportive feedback we received.
In this Newsletter we return to the complicated but satisfying business of electoral politics.
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AEC Registration
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is still assessing (via a statistical process) if we have over the 1500 members required to continue as a registered political party. Every time an election is called (even a By-election) the AEC is required by law to stop work registration issues. That means the process is still ongoing. We now have over 3100 members (and growing every day) so we will survive. It is just a matter of proving it without wasting a lot of volunteer labour. When the time comes, if you receive an email, text or call from the AEC, please confirm that you are a member. If you have developed some second thoughts since joining please ignore the request rather than denying us. Under the strange statistical process the AEC uses we are only allowed a tiny number of denials before they disallow our whole submission.
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Marnie Laree Davis stands in the Fadden By-election for the IAPA
Even if you live far from Fadden, we wanted to share the thinking and strategy behind contesting this election. We have a wealth of experience among our members so we really value your constructive suggestions.
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Profile of Fadden
Fadden is the most northern of the three seats that make up the Gold Coast.
To the North is the first of the greater Brisbane seats, the Electorate of Bowman which includes the sand island of Minjerribah and the bay-side suburbs of Wellington Point through to Redland Bay.
1.7% of the population of Fadden identify as being either Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and 0.79% voted for the IAPA at the last Federal Election in the Senate. If only A&TSI people voted for us (which is unlikely) then about 46% did which is a good result, especially since there was no intensive effort from the IAPA in Fadden then. (In contrast to some other States, in Qld the proportion of A&TSI people in an electorate barely ever drops below 1%)
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We have 25 IAPA members living in the Electorate.
All the Gold Coast Electorates have been held by the Liberal Party, with comfortable margins for many years.
The By-Election has been caused by the resignation of Stuart Robert who was a controversial minister in the last federal Coalition government and who, among others, oversaw the ’Robo-debt‘ scheme.
Fadden is on Kombumerri Country.
Left Marnie with Traditional Owner Justine Dillon.
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Right Marnie joining in with Quandamooka and Kombumerri dance.
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The IAPA Overall Strategy
The eventual aim of the IAPA is to get elected representatives in to parliaments who will be able to exercise considerable power to the benefit of Mob when they find themselves in ’balance of power‘ situations leading on to even more influence in coalitions and the like.
We also expect to make things happen on the way to that goal. For instance other parties may take up our policies so they don‘t lose votes to an Indigenous party like us. Being a parliamentarian also gives a good well-resourced platform for promoting issues.
Left Marnie promote the IAPA and her canditature at the NAIDOC National Awards in Brisbane on Saturday night.
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The Federation Problem
The IAPA believes that the most important issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander’s lives are controlled by the States i.e. police, prisons, courts, hospitals, education, child ‘protection’, land use, water management, mining & pastoral leases, land tenure and more.
This is why the IAPA must eventually contest State elections to best improve the lives of our mob. But achieving registration at State level is difficult and uses a lot of resources and has to be balanced against the other priority of the IAPA to simply to stay afloat so we have a chance to achieve our long-term aims. We recognise that no Indigenous party in the county is yet to have contested more than two elections in a row.
Since the 1967 Referendum, the Federal government has funded programs through Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander controlled
community organisations to make up for the deficiencies in what the States provide for Indigenous people. This has proved very successful but we believe this funding is too much at the whim of changing Federal governments and there are limits to how much it can do.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People still need housing, have dealings with the police, go to general hospitals when very sick, face the courts, negotiate with mining companies and so on.
We believe the Federal Government needs to exert its revenue raising and international treaty power over the States to extract proper, culturally safe, non-racist treatment for Mob in all areas of State government service provision.
For example, this approach could have applied to the generous GST deal recently worked out for Western Australia by the former federal government, resulting in that State reporting a
surplus of 6 Billion dollars. If there had been an IAPA Senator whose vote was needed to pass that legislation, he or she would have made their support conditional on a fairer share of the wealth of WA being given over to the Aboriginal people living there, especially those living in the north west of the State where most of Australia’s wealth is now produced.
So the worst problems mostly play out at the State level but power can be had anywhere if the opportunity arises. For instance a candidate may even decide to stand for local government to gain experience and still be able to do good things for Mob at a local level.
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Upper Houses are generally good for small parties but it is not the whole story.
Because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People represent less than 4% of the population over all in this continent, many people feel hopeless about the electoral route to justice and believe the only path forward is to continue to beg for justice from the dominant majority.
The IAPA is not so pessimistic. Firstly we believe that there are many genuine non-indigenous allies (not just white) who cannot walk around with their heads held high until Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have justice in this continent. Secondly we believe that many disadvantaged non-indigenous people feel the same about how the state treats them. Thirdly, most people are now concerned about the natural world and believe traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land management can do a lot
to protect the environment.
So while the demands for justice from the big powerful institutions has to continue we think there is an extra way to get a ‘voice at the table’ or be ‘in the room where it happens’.
The final cause for optimism is the use of smart tactics. Minority parties do better in the proportional representation of upper houses where all the small numbers are gathered up to hopefully be enough to elect a member. So the best prospects for the IAPA are (roughly in order):
- the NSW Legislative Council (NSW Upper House)
- the Victorian Legislative Council (Victorian Upper House)
- the Australian Senate (this varies as to the State)
But there is a catch. People usually vote for both the lower and upper houses at the same time. It is the volunteers at polling places trying to get their party’s local candidate elected who
also push votes into the upper house for their party.
It is really hard to run an upper house campaign without having the support of lower house campaigns. Considering that, Uncle Owen Whyman and Lawrence Brook did a remarkable job in NSW with the support of only three lower house campaigns. Meanwhile Lionel Henaway and Jenny-lee Carr got a great result in Qld without any lower house support at all.
The other reason for optimism is that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People tend to be clustered more in certain electorates. Here are the best examples federally:
Lingiari (most of NT) 40 %
Leichhardt (Cape York, Cairns) 17 %
Durack (most of WA) 17%
Parkes (NW half of NSW) 16%
Kennedy (Mt Isa Gulf, Cairns etc) 14%
Herbert (Townsville) 8.5%
Solomon (Darwin) 8.5 %
New England (Armidale etc. NSW) 8.4%
Braddon (NW TAS) 7.3 %
Grey (most
of SA) 6.4 %
At the last Federal election, Derek Hardman, standing for the IAPA, received 5.0 % of the vote in Parkes. Because Derek received more than 4% of the primary (No. 1) vote, the rules state the IAPA gets our $2000 deposit back and some of the same election funding which the bigger parties help themselves to. This is so important because it helps us to ‘live to fight another day’.
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So why contest the Fadden By-Election?
There are lots of exciting things about this by-election:
It is great to return to having a candidate officially nominated by the AEC registered party that is the IAPA. Our IAPA backed independent candidates in Victoria and NSW; Laylah Al-Saimary, Storm Hellmuth, Colin Mancell, Aunty Colleen Fuller and Brett Duroux, did a staunch job representing the IAPA but they were disadvantaged by the confusion in the public mind about their status in relation to the IAPA.
Marnie will have the advantage of having the full party name next to hers on the ballot paper and for the very first time, the official party logo designed by Amelia Whyman.
We were very lucky to have an excellent heavily involved candidate waiting to go on the Gold Coast right where this By-Election was announced. Marnie Laree Davis works and advocates in
many or the areas which are so important to the IAPA: child removals, youth justice, family well-being, family violence, and culturally safe education. She is also well known and respected in the area and the community.
One-off elections like this allow the whole IAPA to concentrate on one small area. To a certain extent this offsets the disadvantage of being so poorly resourced and having so few volunteers compared to the bigger parties.
By-elections can sometimes receive a disproportionate level of interest and media attention, especially in the national media which tends to be more interested in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People stories than average. Leading up to the Referendum we are of course seeing an increase in interest in race relations.
We have 25 members in Fadden and it will be the first lower house seat we have contested in Qld so it
represents a landmark in the expansion of the IAPA.
Contesting elections is the best, and maybe most cost effective, way to get more people to know about the IAPA which leads to more votes down the track in the next election, more members, hopefully more volunteers and perhaps a donation or two.
Also to stay registered, a political party has to compete in elections every three years. A by-election is sufficient for that. We fully expect to put up a good show at the next federal election but it is good to have an election under our belt as insurance.
The timing is also good with NAIDOC week in the lead up. Due to preferential voting, people can always express their support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People AND have a say in who forms the government. However we are hoping the fact that this election cannot change the government will lead to people
voting more imaginatively.
Unfortunately with a field of 13 there are many other opportunities for a protest vote, the Mob is very much in the minority and the electorate is seen as conservative. However we have learnt not to make assumptions about our voters. In Parkes 55 % of the people who voted 1 for Derek ended up with their preferences going to the National Party candidate. We also received a good hearing in Grafton (NSW) which is also seen to be conservative. The reception was remarkably similar to the reception in inner-city Melbourne.
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Donations
As Uncle Owen Whyman says, ”We’re here to stay, We’re not going anywhere” so we will survive on the smell of an oily rag but some money we help us grow faster, we will appreciate it, and we will spend it very carefully.
If you can afford it, you can donate in two main ways:
Through the Chuffed Fundraiser ‘The Indigenous Party of Australia Needs Your Support!’ (https://chuffed.org/project/support-indigenous-party-of-australia)
The other way is to make a direct deposit to the:
IAPA’s ‘Westpac Community Solutions One’ account in Broken Hill:
Account name: INDIGENOUS ABORIGINAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA.
BSB: 032 - 816
Account number: 317621
Donations are totally tax deductible. (Donations to any registered political party are always tax deductible.)
If you are closer to actual campaigns
you may prefer to donate in kind, maybe helping to pay for signs or pamphlets.
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Even better than Donations!
Some of the best you things you can do for the IAPA do not cost you a cent.
The single best thing you can do to help the IAPA survive and thrive is to give out how-to-vote cards at polling places when an election comes to your area. The card is mostly a prop; it is your presence and advocacy that shows the IAPA is a real serious party with committed supporters.
Giving out how-to-vote cards might seem like an old fashioned pointless exercise but it is actually the most effective activity for increasing a party’s vote. All major parties know this is true and in our short history we have confirmed the fact. Last year in Melbourne, at a polling place with IAPA volunteers there all day we received a whopping 7% of the vote, while unattended polling places only returned about 1% for us.
Recently in Clarence, NSW, we received 5.1%
of the vote at the only voting centre fully attended by an IAPA volunteer but only about 1.5 % overall which included all the polling places unattended by IAPA people. One stalwart member at Evans Head polling place was able to increase our vote by 362% over the result received there during the Federal election when no IAPA volunteer was in attendance.
The difference between 1% and 7% is huge for a tiny Party like us. Over 4% will get us our $2000 deposit back and some of the same election funding that the big parties help themselves to. Less than 4% will mean scrounging for every cent to keep the IAPA alive. Over 4% will encourage members and help to grow the Party.
Larger parties usually roster volunteers on for 2 hour shifts but we will very gratefully accept any amount of time. Even staying on for a little while after or coming a little earlier when you vote yourself
would help. We will usually have signs and cards at each polling place which you can just pick up and start distributing. This will definitely be the case in Fadden.
In previous elections a few volunteers have done full days including full weeks of pre-poll so any advance on that will be an improvement. Even coming up and having a chat or relieving the volunteer so they can go to the toilet or get something to eat or drink would be very helpful.
It should be a lot of fun with a group and if you are shy or unsure it helps a lot to have company. Failing that, the volunteers from other parties are also usually very welcoming and friendly.
Please feel free to use your initiative - we are a small grass-roots inclusive party and the issues of concern are well known to most members. You are highly unlikely to do or say anything which would be very at odds with IAPA
policies. Please feel free to check with us or the IAPA website if you want to be sure.
If you live in or near Fadden (Suburbs such as Ormeau, Coomera, Helensvale, Oxenford, Coombabah, Runaway Bay, Pacific Pines, Arundel, Gaven, Parkwood and Labrador; roughly postcodes 4207 - 4211) or have friends or rels who live there please see if they might like to volunteer in the next couple of weeks.
The second best thing you can do is let us know why working the polling places is not for you. This allows us to clear up any misconceptions or possibly address any issues which could apply to others too. For instance someone might be uncomfortable doing it on their own or are worried about hostility.
And if it’s still not for you, that’s fine too. There are many ways you can help the IAPA. Just staying on our books to make sure we keep our registration is an enormous help. If
you can’t do any more than that there is no need to resign. We can just make a note next to your name that you don’t wish to receive requests for assistance.
We realise many people were outraged at the sudden unfair change of rules which made it so hard for us to get registered and signed up simply to help us get the numbers. We are eternally grateful for that and understand some never expected to play any further role in the Party but it’s impossible for us to know who that applies to. So we are simply inviting further contribution, not expecting or demanding it.
The idea of helping to start a new Indigenous party is exciting but helping it to grow to the point where it wields real power could be even more satisfying. Sometimes you can’t just light a match and stand back. Some fires take a while to catch on, especially if conditions aren’t favourable.
So
in conclusion, please find and be inspired by the full media release for the Candidature of Marnie Laree Davis. I’m sure you will find it interesting and will notice that Marnie has experience, heart and solutions for many challenges facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island families, not just in her area but all over the continent.
Marnie and the whole IAPA will be very grateful for any assistance you can give her.
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INDIGENOUS - ABORIGINAL PARTY of AUSTRALIA
MEDIA RELEASE 26 June 2023
'ABORIGINAL CANDIDATE TO RUN IN THE FADDEN BY-ELECTION'
Passionate Aboriginal community worker and advocate, Marnie Laree Davis, has declared her candidacy for the July 15 by-election in the Federal Gold Coast Electorate of Fadden, representing the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia (IAPA).
Marnie Laree Davis, a proud Darug woman raised on Quandamooka country, with strong ties to Minjerribah, relocated to the Gold Coast (Kombumerri country) to solely raise her daughter several years ago.
As a member of the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia, Marnie’s passion is working in partnership with community members and organisations, understanding that local challenges can only be resolved by local solutions. With a passion for good community outcomes, she has been working for several years on the Gold Coast in the Aboriginal family wellbeing and social health field as well as within domestic violence refuges,
advocating for survivors of domestic family violence.
With a deep understanding of the challenges faced by communities, Marnie stresses the urgency of addressing service gaps for individuals and families in crisis. Marnie has experience advocating against forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families and the governments non-adherence to the legislation, policy and practice of the five elements which include prevention, participation, partnership, placement and connection. She has worked to break the cycle of intergenerational trauma and another generation of forced child removal.
Marnie is seeking increased support for domestic violence prevention services, including addressing systemic abuse and ensuring funding is equitable i.e. for both men and women impacted by domestic violence, for those impacted by family domestic violence and
those in same sex relationships. Marnie knows too well the issues in triaging support for victims in crisis and that the gaps between the police, the Magistrate’s Court, and the Family Court can leave victims of domestic violence unprotected and result in another statistic to lives lost due to domestic violence.
Drawing on her experience in government and the community sector, Marnie has a number of proposals for addressing the housing crisis and for implementing intensive family support programs as a prevention and intervention for youth and families in crisis. Marnie notes that justice reinvestment has been proven to reduce crime.
Marnie has worked within a community led early intervention and prevention program for at-risk Aboriginal families, involving in-home support from well-trained and respected Aboriginal community members. Marnie has seen the outcomes of these
programs and the reduction of children being removed from their family and improves family well-being through strengthening culture and kinship support networks. By entering politics Marnie hopes to see such programs rolled out for every family that needs them, noting that six week supports families currently receive is a bandaid short term solution.
Having worked with students, Marnie wants schools resourced to support students with different learning styles ensuring engagement and retention. Marnie wants school curriculums changed so that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language and culture are mandatory subjects taught in all schools nationally. Her plan would have an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Officer, who identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, available at each school campus. She notes that the promotion of culture and the celebration
of cultural events is currently dependent on the Principal and/or the individual teacher.
Marnie would like to see dramatically increased Federal and State funding for creatively designed family structure flexible public housing coupled with a thorough, well resourced Queensland State audit of the existing public housing stock to make sure it is being used effectively. This could release accommodation more quickly in contrast to lengthy delays for new buildings. Having worked extensively in the field she knows that some public tenants have not had their assets, income or family size retested since first being allocated a house. With a 15 year wait for public housing on the Gold Coast, she insists that the prioritising for public housing of families at risk from domestic violence, living in a refuge, being homeless, having disabilities and the like must be reinstated.
"By
electing me as a member of the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia, voters will support the only political party that’s First Nations, that’s grass roots, and isn’t about ego or money; this party is about truth telling, community outcomes and protecting country. My party faces the truth and offers effective solutions to rectify the hardships and trauma endured by many individuals and families nationally."
Marnie is actively involved with government and community organisations in both South East Queensland and Northern NSW, working tirelessly to support and advocate for better outcomes for her community. Through her day-to-day work, she witnesses first-hand the disparities and gaps in health and social outcomes that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people face.
"Our voices and opinions have been suppressed and we have been excluded for too long; our people
need to be heard so that we can bridge the many gaps”, asserts Marnie. "By voting for me and the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia, Australians can stand beside us in our pursuit of justice, equity and inclusion and help alleviate the intergenerational trauma endured by Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia."
For more information on Ms Marnie Laree Davis and the Indigenous - Aboriginal Party of Australia platform, please visit: www.indigenouspartyofaustralia.com
The IAPA is a national, Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) registered party that holds governments to account while pursuing real power for Indigenous people in the Parliaments of Australia. It ran seven Indigenous candidates in the last Federal election and represents a diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and families right around the
continent working with non-Indigenous allies committed to the transfer of that power.
Contacts:
Ms Marnie Laree Davis
IAPA Candidate for Fadden
indigenouspartyofaustralia@gmail.com
Jonathan Cookson
Fadden Volunteer Campaign Manager
IAPA Qld Deputy Registered Officer
indigenouspartyofaustralia@gmail.com
0432 760 960
Ms Jenny-lee Carr
Previous IAPA Qld Senate Candidate
Fadden Volunteer Campaign Co-Manager
jennylee01@outlook.com
0477 744 999
Uncle Owen Whyman
IAPA Founder and Convenor.
Previous IAPA NSW Lead Senate Candidate
indigenouspartyofaustralia@gmail.com
0499 342 340
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