By Ewen McRae
Labor’s stranglehold on the west of Melbourne has spread to the upper house, with the ALP likely to pick up an extra representative for the region following last month’s election.
Labor held two of the five places for the western metropolitan region of the Legislative Council going into the state election, with the Liberal’s Bernie Finn, Greens’ Huong Truong, and former Democratic Labor Party member turned independent Rachel Carling-Jenkins filling the remaining three seats.
Ms Carling-Jenkins did not recontest her place in the upper house, instead running as an unsuccessful candidate in the lower house seat of Werribee against treasurer Tim Pallas.
Labor’s Khalil Eidah also did not re-contest this election.
Counting in the upper house is continuing, but it appears that Ms Truong will lose her place in the Parliament, with the Greens losing their representative for the region despite the third highest vote count.
Incumbent Labor candidate Cesar Melhem was re-elected, and looks like being joined by Ingrid Stitt and Kaushaliya Virjibhai Vaghela as the three Labor members of the Legislative Council in Melbourne’s west.
Mr Finn will also return to the upper house for a fourth straight term.
The final position looks like going to Derryn Hinch Justice Party candidate Catherine Cumming.
Mr Hinch said on Facebook they would be a strong voice for law and order in the state.
“Thank you Victoria,” he said.
“You elected Justice Party candidates to the Upper House.
“We don’t know yet how many. It is definitely one, and maybe three or four. It will give us vital input into law and order issues in this state.”
The count of upper house ballots could take a number of weeks to determine the winners.
Ms Truong told supporters on the night of the election she was proud of the campaign the Greens had run.
“I’m so proud that we were able to do this in the most Greens way possible,” she said.
“I don’t think I have ever enjoyed a campaign as much as I have this one.”
