THE POLL BLUDGER
New South Wales Legislative Assembly Election 2007

DRUMMOYNE
Labor 8.7%

Drummoyne covers the south shore of the harbour to the west of the city, from Drummoyne itself through Canada Bay to Concord and Homebush. It was last held by the Liberals in 1953, and has been in Labor hands since 1962. The redistribution has sent 5000 voters around Haberfield to Balmain (formerly Port Jackson) in the east, with no impact on the margin. Former Nurses Association official Angela D'Amore (left) succeeded John Murray as member in 2003 with the backing of the Right, which secured her preselection through the controversial "N40" rule which allows the Right-controlled administrative committee to determine half the vote. D'Amore has evidently failed to win over local members since her election, having again relied on central party intervention to secure preselection for the coming election. Branches in Drummoyne, Concord and Five Dock protested by passing motions of no-confidence against her. In August internal polling was leaked to the Inner-West Weekly purporting to show D'Amore was less popular in the electorate than her 2003 preselection rival Angelo Tsirekas, the mayor of Canada Bay. Despite this, D'Amore was said to be angling for a cabinet post when talk of a reshuffle emerged in December. The Liberals have again nominated their candidate from 2003, Greg Long (right), who runs a hair care manufacturing business. Long continued to be cited in the media as the party's local "representative" following the election, with party state director Graham Jaeschke telling the Inner-West Weekly there was "a general agreement that he was doing the job of a candidate".

ASSESSMENT: Labor retain