Vote 1 for an independent voice for Northcote

So tomorrow is election day, and it's time for everyone to consider very carefully how they are going to vote. For me the campaign has been about climate change, about traffic, about big developments looming over us without a say for residents, about stopping the damage from poker machines, and about many other local issues on which I have clear policies.

I've worked hard to reach as many voters as a I can, delivering as many of my flyers to your letter-boxes as I have been able to with the support of family and friends (thanks!). Now it's up to you, the voters of Alphington, Northcote, Thornbury, Fairfield and parts of Preston who together make up the Lower House District of Northcote.

If you want an independent MP who can raise important issues in the Parliament and fight for better results without being controlled by a political party, if you want to be represented directly, then please consider voting "1" for me.

In asking this, I would like you to consider that I am the only independent in this seat who has offered a clear picture of what I stand for from the very first day nominations opened on 3 November. 

My flyers include a how-to-vote card, and this shows how I will be voting myself, based on what I think of the other candidates, whether I know who they are, and on the policies they have put forward in time for me to consider them.

The order I have given is a suggestion only, and if you decide to give me first preference, I ask that you then carefully consider how you number each of the other candidates. No political party can actually "direct" preferences if voters decide the order for themselves.

Tomorrow I will be out at polling booths handing out my how-to-vote cards together with my volunteers. Please feel free to say hello and to ask me any questions you may have.

Finally, my how-to-vote cards are printed on 100% recycled paper, but there aren't that many of them. If you have received one in your letter-box, please use it again when you go to vote. If you haven't received one, feel free to print out the web version. Some will also be available at voting centres, and I ask that these be returned to the person who handed them out to you wherever possible.

That's it. It's time to let democracy take its course!

Cheers, Darren Lewin-Hill

How I'm going to vote - you too, I hope

The finicky process of registering a how-to-vote card with the Victorian Electoral Commission now complete, I'm pleased to present mine here at Northcote Independent.

My tentative headline for this post reflects my thinking about preferences. You, the voters, choose exactly how to order your preferences, and no party can "direct" you how to do so. Exercising your choice for every preference - in the case of Northcote, from first down to sixth - is the best way to frustrate the preference-dealing of the major parties.

In my case, I present my preferences to you as the way I am going to vote in good conscience, based on my assessment of each candidate. If you agree with me, I invite you to follow my suggestions!

An earlier post on preferences is here.

Northcote smear flyer, Garrett letter, show Labor fears alternative vote

Here's a media release I issued this morning:

The Labor Party has issued a grubby flyer, and a letter from Federal MP and former Oils frontman, Peter Garrett, in an attempt to suppress the Northcote vote for the Greens and, indirectly, independent candidate, Darren Lewin-Hill. The flyer and letter suggest a preference deal between the Greens and the Liberals. However, while the Greens and Lewin-Hill have preferenced each other second, they have both preferenced the Labor Party above the Liberals and Family First on how-to-vote cards registered with the Victorian Electoral Commission.

'I don't want people who are considering voting for a local independent to think that my preferences to the Greens might ultimately support the Liberals, when that is absolutely not the case,' Mr Lewin-Hill said today, noting that he was doing his utmost to win as a long-shot outsider in the contest.

Read the full media release