INDEPENDENT candidate for McMillan Leigh Gatt says he is confident he will receive more votes than last election by offering voters “proper representation” for the electorate.
Pictured: Leigh Gatt. Image supplied by Mr Gatt.
ADVERTISEMENT
Mr Gatt, who along with then-Family First candidate Linden Stokes was the outpolled by the informal vote in the 2010 election, told The Warragul Citizen he had been working to get his name known in the electorate.
“I’ve done radio advertising to let people know what I’m actually standing for [and] meeting people in the streets as I come across them,” Mr Gatt said.
“People will actually approach me and say they have heard me on the radio…. which is good, it’s great. It’s just getting out there and talking to people.
“It’ll be interesting to see how I go.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Mr Gatt said he became a candidate because he does not think the area is being properly represented.
“I think the Liberal Party [thinks] McMillan is a safe seat so they don’t have to do anything, so we’re not getting the representation that we should,” he said.
Mr Gatt said he would improve representation through asking the electorate how he should vote on major issues as they arise.
“What I believe is proper representation is called direct democracy,” Mr Gatt said.
“It’s basically a setup where you actually have to go back to your people, to your electorate and do a consensus (sic) often on certain issues, for example boat people; should we allow them to stay or send them home.
“I’d take that view to parliament and that’s what I’d vote for.”
Asked if that made him similar to Senator Online candidate Gary Patton, Mr Gatt said “probably but I’m a bit different, if you know what I mean.”
“Like, I’m independent so I’m not bound by a party so I’ve got my own views, I do believe that we should be looking after Australians first.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We shouldn’t be accepting boat people, we shouldn’t be accepting refugees because we’ve got homeless and unemployed (sic) in this country.”
Mr Gatt said he thinks “this current government has neglected the Australian people.”
