Independent candidate Suzanna Sheed is on the verge of pulling off an “Indi”.
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The long shot of the state election is poised to win Shepparton, previously the second safest Victorian seat, which has been held by the Nationals for the past 47 years.
Many have been quick to compare Ms Sheed to independent MP Cathy McGowan, who unseated Liberal MP Sophie Mirabella in Indi at the last federal election.
“We know that marginal seats do better,” an upbeat Ms Sheed said yesterday.
“People have come to the realisation that being a safe seat does not serve them well.”
The devastating blow for the Nationals has created new tensions within the Coalition, with some sources accusing the Liberals of handing out how-to-vote cards for the Shepparton independent.
They said this was payback for Nationals figures helping Ms McGowan in Indi.
The 60-year-old family lawyer began campaigning just four weeks ago, tapping into a growing sentiment in the community that they were being ignored.
Her husband is a well-known paediatrician in the area, and has literally delivered many of her voters.
While Ms Sheed was unsure whether Liberals had handed out material for her, she said she was “quite sure” a few voted for her.
“This community has watched politicians make hundreds of millions of dollars of promises to our neighbours in Bendigo, Ballarat, the Latrobe Valley and Geelong. Our rail services are not good, our hospital needs up to $400 million to bring it up to an acceptable standard and we have a high youth unemployment. The words of our campaign were ‘stand up Shepparton, it’s our turn’.”
While Ms Sheed is not declaring victory yet, she is poised to win the rural seat with a 32.5 per cent swing against the Nationals.
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