The Poll Bludger - Australian State and Federal Elections

RIVERTON Labor 2.1%
Upper house region: South Metropolitan Federal divisions: Tangney
	TONY McRAE Labor (top) MIKE NAHAN Liberal (bottom) DANIEL OSSEVOORT Christian Democratic Party JOY DRENNAN Family First SOL HANNA Greens CHRISTOPHER BOOTS Independent

The inner southern metropolitan seat of Riverton has been left largely intact by the redistribution, maintaining the Canning River and Karel Avenue as its northern and western boundaries while ceding Ferndale in the east to Cannington and Leeming in the south-west to Jandakot. In the south it gains territory, but no voters, through the addition of the Canning Vale prison site. The loss of Liberal-voting Leeming accounts for a 0.7 per cent increase in Labor's margin. The electorate was created at the 1989 election with the abolition of Liberal-held Clontarf in the north and Labor-held Canning in the south, and was held for its first 12 years by Court government Workplace Relations Minister Graham Kierath. It then became a shock gain for Labor in 2001 when a 9.7 per cent swing demolished the Liberal margin of 6.7 per cent, to the surprise of Kierath (who watched the disaster unfold while commentating on the ABC's election night panel) and the delight of the union movement. Kierath went on to stand unsuccessfully for Alfred Cove at the 2005 election, and contested preselection for the now-abolished Murdoch after sitting member Trevor Sprigg died in January 2008.

Riverton has since been held for Labor by Tony McRae, a former National Native Title Tribunal research director and member of the Transport Workers Union-dominated Centre faction. McRae had a troubled run for re-election during the 2005 campaign, when The West Australian devoted its last two front pages before polling day to the matter of a dummy candidate said to have been nominated by the Labor camp without her own knowledge (McRae would later be cleared of misconduct following an investigation by the Corruption and Crime Commission). For good or ill, there was also significant campaign publicity for a decision to force semi-trailers using Leach Highway to detour around the electorate, defusing controversy over the government's abandonment of the Fremantle Eastern Bypass. McRae ultimately survived a 1.4 per cent two-party swing which he suffered despite a 5.2 per cent increase on the primary vote, with preferences proving less favourable than when One Nation directed against all sitting members in 2001.

McRae enjoyed a quick succession of promotions after the election, first to parliamentary secretary in May 2005, then to the cabinet post of Disability Services Minister 12 months later, and finally to Environment Minister in December 2006. The latter promotion was prompted by Small Business Minister Norm Marlborough's departure in the first of what proved to be four ministerial sackings in four months caused by revelations at the Corruption and Crime Commission. McRae himself became the third victim in late February, when the CCC produced a recorded phone conversation in which he discussed fundraising assistance with Brian Burke's lobbyist colleague Julian Grill. The two had earlier discussed a planning matter affecting a client of Grill's, which McRae did not tell Grill he had already signed off on.

In February 2008 the Liberals preselected Mike Nahan, the high-profile former executive director of the Institute of Public Affairs. Nahan said he was reconsidering in early May because the Troy Buswell chair-sniffing incident had made it “almost impossible” for him to win the seat, before confirming his intention to stay in the race a week later.

A week before the election, The West Australian reported that Labor was making a “last-ditch attempt” to hold the seat by promising the Leach Highway truck ban promised in 2005 would be fully operational by the end of the year. At present the government has implemented only the “first stage” of the ban, targeting trucks longer than 19 metres. Riverton has been described during the campaign by party sources as “of concern” to Labor, and “in play”.

ASSESSMENT: LIBERAL GAIN