THE POLL BLUDGER
New South Wales Legislative Assembly Election 2007

PORT MACQUARIE
Independent 31.9% versus Nationals

The town of Port Macquarie is at the northern end of a 70 kilometre stretch of central coast covered by the electorate bearing its name, which extends south as far as the mouth of the Manning River. It also takes in Lord Howe Island. The redistribution has moved its southern boundary with Myall Lakes further north, costing it 7000 voters around Wingham and Cundletown. There has also been a swap of territory with Oxley in the west, from which it gains 4000 voters in the outskirts of Wauchope and loses 1400 around Killabakh further south. The electorate was created with the short-lived expansion of parliament in 1988, when Nationals member Bruce Jeffery moved here from the temporarily abolished Oxley. Jeffery returned to Oxley when it was recreated in 1991 and Port Macquarie went to Wendy Machin, who held Gloucester from 1985 to 1988 and Manning from 1988 to 1991, both of which were abolished. Machin's retirement in 1996 resulted in a by-election that almost caused the National Party to withdraw from the coalition over Liberal Party plans to field a candidate. The Liberals were attempting to court John Barrett, who came within 233 votes of defeating Mark Vaile in his federal seat of Lyne in 1993, but had since quit the party. The Liberals stayed out of the race when Barrett insisted on running as an independent, polling 32.2 per cent and finishing 4.9 per cent behind the Nationals after preferences.

The newly elected member, Rob Oakeshott (left), was quickly promoted to the front bench after the 1999 election with the sport and recreation, fisheries and ports portfolios. Then in March 2002 he quit the Nationals to sit as an independent, complaining of the influence of property developers in local branches, and questioning whether the party was still relevant to an electorate transformed by tourism and demographic change. Robert Wainwright of the Sydney Morning Herald reported there was speculation he might join the Liberal Party, but he has remained independent. The Nationals strongly attacked Oakeshott in the 2003 election over his liberal social views, in particular his support for drug law reform, but he was overwhelmingly re-elected with 69.8 per cent of the primary vote. This time the Nationals have nominated Leslie Williams (right), a local "teacher, student nurse and small business owner".

ASSESSMENT: Independent retain