Millionaire-funded campaign of environment activists threaten to unseat ruling party in Australia elections

Josh Frydenberg (centre), Australia's treasurer, is battling to retain his usually safe seat of Kooyong from independent candidate Dr Monique Ryan (right) - WILLIAM WEST/AFP
Josh Frydenberg (centre), Australia's treasurer, is battling to retain his usually safe seat of Kooyong from independent candidate Dr Monique Ryan (right) - WILLIAM WEST/AFP
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Australian politics could be upended by a cohort of middle-class working women bidding to become “queenmakers” in Saturday’s general election.

As polls narrow ahead of the vote, a group of independent candidates with little or no political experience may hold the balance of power, with their pledge to challenge the “stale” establishment.

Known as the “teal independents”, around 25 candidates - mostly accomplished professional women - are threatening to steal some of the coalition government’s safest seats by pushing for a kinder, climate-focused agenda.

With the help of millions of dollars of funding from pro-environment local businessman Simon Holmes a Court and his Climate 200 group, they are taking on mostly male Liberal MPs in some of Australia’s wealthiest electorates, spanning the country from Perth to Sydney.

Mr Holmes a Court is the son of the late West Australian businessman Robert Holmes a Court, who became the country’s first billionaire and had wide-ranging investments including a stake in Rolls Royce and British television during the 1980s.

If the vote is as close as expected - opposition party Labor is just two points ahead - and no one gets a majority, the teals could decide who leads the next Australian Parliament.

Scott Morrison, the conservative prime minister is narrowly behind in the polls, but commentators say the election is now too close to call, presenting a huge opportunity for the “teals”.

Scott Morrison is narrowly behind in the polls - WILLIAM WEST/AFP
Scott Morrison is narrowly behind in the polls - WILLIAM WEST/AFP

Perhaps the most prominent politician facing defeat at the hands of the teals is Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who is strongly tipped to become the ruling Liberal party’s next leader.

‘This is how politics should be done’

He is up against Dr Monique Ryan, a respected paediatrician and director of neurology at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, who has been busy door-knocking in the Melbourne suburb of Kooyong.

Outside a pre-polling booth recently, her supporters could be seen donning teal T-shirts and waving teal placards - the blue-green has become the unofficial colour of the independents.

“22,000 plus conversations show that climate change and integrity are the most important issues in Kooyong,” she said on Thursday. “Community engagement is at the centre of our campaign. This is how politics should be done.”

Independent candidate Dr Monique Ryan (right) greets voters at a pre-polling centre in Melbourne - WILLIAM WEST/AFP
Independent candidate Dr Monique Ryan (right) greets voters at a pre-polling centre in Melbourne - WILLIAM WEST/AFP

The movement was started by Cathy McGowan, a sheep farmer and former president of Australian Women in Agriculture who unseated a Liberal candidate in 2013 by holding meetings to listen to what locals really wanted from their elected officials.

She has since stood down but has been sharing her experiences with other women who are hoping to repeat the trick.

Dr Ryan is typical of the candidates - well-educated high achievers in their chosen career. Others include an ex-foreign correspondent, a local businesswoman and a CEO.

Human billboards

Mr Frydenberg is six points behind Dr Ryan, according to the latest poll, and admits he is waging a “battle royal” for his seat.

He is so worried that he has hired a small army of human billboards to walk the streets of his blue-ribbon Kooyong constituency in Melbourne to promote his candidacy. Applicants are being paid nearly seventy pounds for a four-hour shift to wear the “Keep Josh” placards.

Josh Frydenberg is six points behind Dr Monique Ryan in the polls - WILLIAM WEST/AFP
Josh Frydenberg is six points behind Dr Monique Ryan in the polls - WILLIAM WEST/AFP

The independents have largely been reluctant to confirm which way they would vote if they found themselves holding the balance of power in a hung parliament.

But given their funding, they are more likely to support Labor or the Greens given their demands for tougher measures to combat climate change.

“We want to back local communities who want to ditch stale politicians and elect fresh independent voices instead,” Mr Holmes a Court says on his website.

“We’re raising funds to support around 20 underdog candidates who stand for cleaning up politics and following the science of climate change.”

Australia's impact on global warming

Australia has lagged behind many other countries in its approach to global warming.

Per capita it is responsible for more than one per cent of global emissions, making it the world’s 14th highest contributor.

Although the coalition government finally pledged itself to a net zero emissions target by 2050 at the COP26 summit in Glasgow, many Australians regard it as a hollow promise, making climate change one of the biggest issues in this election, especially among the young.