Labor candidates ducking for cover in council elections

Labor candidates ducking for cover in council elections | The Daily Telegraph

THE scandal-prone NSW Labor Party is facing a rout in today's local government elections - so much so that it has tried to disguise itself for the ballot.

Members from dumped police minister Matt Brown's Kiama branch have been caught running a campaign under the "Community First" title despite having no official alliance with the registered political party, Community First Alliance.

Party officials also warned that they expected voters to "give them a belting" in today's council elections.

Former State MP and lord mayoral candidate Meredith Burgmann has admitted that her campaign, running under the banner of Community Labor, was designed to distance her team from the Government.

"We are making sure we are different to the more conservative leadership of the State Labor Party," said Ms Burgmann.

"We still see us as Labor but Community Labor is distancing ourselves from the old right wing leadership."

But other Labor candidates have taken it one step further, ditching Labor entirely.

Kiama branch president Neil Reilly has dropped Labor from his election material and is claiming to be part of Community First with other ALP members such as Joyce Wheatley and Simon Mansfield.

In Marrickville, Labor members are running as Local Labor while the traditional Country Labor members in Orange are now running as unaffiliated.

Community First Alliance president Sonya Phillips said she would make a formal complaint to the NSW Electoral Commission over the issue.