Federal seat of Richmond. Image AECVoting in the seat of Richmond
The sitting member for the seat of Richmond is Labor’s Justine Elliot who has held the seat for 20 years. Until 1990 it was considered a safe National Party seat when a surprise entry by anti-nuclear candidate Dr Helen Caldicott, persuaded to run by The Echo’s found Nicholas Shand, swung the seat away from the Nationals to Labor’s Neville Newell. Ms Caldicott only lost to Labor by 600 primary votes.
Neville Newell held the seat until 1996 when it went back to the Nationals member Larry Anthony, who was part of the Anthony political dynasty that had seen both his father and grandfather hold the seat before him. He lost the seat on the back of Greens preferences in 2004 to current Labor member Justine Elliot.
Things are looking tight this election with well-known activist, comedian, and local identity Mandy Nolan running for The Greens for the second time, aiming to exert influence on government through the crossbench and the potential of a minority government.
The 2022 elections saw a swing away from Labor of 2.9 per cent and from the Nationals of 13.5 per cent while the Greens saw a swing towards them of 4.9 per cent.
To win the seat the Greens need a swing of 1.8 per cent with ABC Election Analyst, Antony Green, saying that ‘Richmond on the North Coast of New South Wales is the seat that you’ve really got to watch’.
