The most secretive part of campaigning is preference agreements — and in many ways it’s the most commerce-like. Candidates and their managers haggle about who will go where on the ever-popular “how to vote” card.
Now until now I have resisted making a prejudgement about how my how to vote card would look — or whether I’d have one at all. In a lot of seats the LDP is not directing preferences, or is doing a split-preference approach.
When I signed up with the LDP, part of why I came on board was my political experience — especially my experience as a resident in Darwin. They asked me to exercise my judgment.
When I originally set out to deal, my first instinct was to get as much help from another candidate’s campaign as possible: to try and get some money or resources. But today I reflected that this would just undermine my whole approach. If I take resources from a major candidate, I’m likely to be written off as a stooge. This would destroy my attempt to drive home that I am a serious and meaningful alternative.
With that in mind, today I made an agreement on my number two position. It’s a 2-for-2 swap without any other conditions or riders.
I will hold off discussing other preferences until I’ve had a chance to talk to some of the other candidates. I’m also holding off for the depressing reason of media cycles. It is too late today to influence tomorrow’s story. Moreover John Howard will be in town tomorrow, which I expect to swamp anything I am doing. So I am reluctantly saying that I can’t announce my preferences officially until at least Monday, when I can hope for a better run in the media. I hope to have a card worked out by then.
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