THE POLL BLUDGER
Victorian Legislative Assembly Election 2006

BENDIGO WEST
Labor 16.0%

Bendigo was divided into the two electorates of Bendigo East and Bendigo West at the 1985 election, the latter extending beyond the city limits to take in the towns of Tarnagulla, Maldon and Castlemaine. Bendigo West has been won by Labor at each election since except 1992, when Liberal candidate Max Turner defeated Labor incumbent David Kennedy by 1.1 per cent. Bob Cameron (left), a former lawyer and stalwart of the Socialist Left faction, recovered it for Labor at the 1996 election with a 3.3 per cent swing and strongly consolidated his position with 9.0 per cent and 5.1 per cent swings in 1999 and 2002. Cameron was appointed to a parliamentary secretary position immediately after his election and became Local Government and WorkCover Minister when the Bracks government was elected in 1999, moving to agriculture after the 2002 election. His Liberal opponent is Bruce McClure (right), a civil engineer.

On October 16, the government unveiled the $260 million "Goldfields Superpipe" proposal to pump 38 gigalitres from the Goulburn River to Bendigo and Ballarat, which have been hit by severe restrictions during the current dry spell. Liberal water spokesman Denis Napthine slammed the inclusion of Ballarat in the project, declaring: "People in the Goulburn Valley and the Goulburn irrigation system are absolutely ropeable about the Bracks government moving into their irrigation district and stealing their water for Ballarat".

Early in the second week of the campaign, AAPT announced it would close its Bendigo call centre next year with the loss of 380 jobs, prompting a promise from Labor to "find another company" to replace it.

ASSESSMENT: Labor retain