A not-so-easy Community Independent Senate seat

October 10, 2025

In his article on the possibility of Teals getting Senate seats, Bob McMullan crunches only one of the two lots of vital numbers – votes. He ignores or doesn’t appreciate the three-step process of getting an MP elected.

First, local people decide they want a better MP than the one they’ve got. They form a group to discuss what sort of person this might be and what they want of them. Second, they advertise for a candidate and choose whom they think will meet their aspirations. Third, they recruit as many volunteers as they can to get the message out. There is a possible, not a definite fourth step (which critics who call Community Independents the puppets of Simon Holmes à Court choose to ignore): Climate 200 choose to support a candidate, or not, based on their own assessment of a candidate’s chance of success.

McMullan ignores all those volunteers, from those forming the initial planning group to the thousands who would be needed to get the word out – and put their money in. Because, also ignored, although Climate 200’s funding is generous, unfortunately much more than their contribution is needed in today’s political climate. Good luck, but …