Frequently Asked Questions

The following are some of the frequently asked questions about me being an independent candidate.

What are your chances of winning the seat?

I rate my chance of winning the seat as unlikely – but possible.

Why stand then?

I know that there are many Aston voters, who no longer support the major parties. The most common theme is that the voters are over electing a party candidate only for them to represent the party – as a higher priority than the voters of Aston.

I am one of those people. Now I could go and vote for someone that I do not particularly want to vote for, but we have to vote; or I can stand up and say that I will be voting for someone who has pledged to put us, the voters of Aston first. – At this stage this is me!

What does your path to victory look like?

For me to win the seat, I will need to gain 25-30% of the first preference vote. If the research is correct that up to 50% of voters are disillusioned by the major parties, then I need to win 50% of the disillusioned voters.

If I gain 25-30% of the total votes, then there is a strong possibility that I would end up as one of the top two candidates. With preferential voting, if I end up in the top two, then it would be probable that I would win the seat, as I do not expect that Liberals will preference Labor over me or Labor to preference Liberals over me.

What do you bring to this election campaign?

I challenge the major party candidates to spell out what they will do for Aston. They will no doubt do some incredible spins on what their party will do, but the question I am offering you the licence to ask the major party candidates. “WHAT WILL YOU DO FOR ASTON?”

As a local independent candidate, I will be pledging my support a for a number of local projects and local opportunities. This will give the major party candidates the opportunity to stand up and match my support, or ignore Aston and stick to the party line – which should be a red flag for all voters.

What happens if you win the seat?

There are two scenarios that would play out.

Scenario 1 – I become a back bencher and would advocate for my policy positions through private members bills and effectively being a “squeaky wheel”. In this scenario, my position on anything could be ignored by the governing major party.

Scenario 2 – One or both of the major parties need my vote to form a minority government. In this scenario, then my policies are all on the table and they stand a high chance of being implemented.

How will you decide who to support if scenario 2 – a hung parliament, situation arises.

I will present each party with the same document listing my policy positions and invite them to respond. Based on the response I will focus the discussions and make a decision based on who is offering the best package for Aston.

I will also be identifying policy positions of both the parties and advising them of what I would and would not support. This may be a deal breaker for them, although I do believe that their desire to govern is extremely strong, and a major party promise is only a pitch.

Finally, if I ended up with a deadlock with the major parties, I would consider which party had the most first preference votes from the voters of Aston. I know that as an independent, whomever I choose, will alienate half the voters, but that is the reality of decision making.

What promises can you really make?

There is only one promise that I can make that I know I will keep “If elected my top priority is to represent the voters of Aston first and foremost.” All the rest, you will notice I state that I will advocate for, which as an independent, is just being honest with you, because unless there is a hung parliament situation, I cannot honestly promise anything.

How is your campaign funded?

I am self-funding this campaign. I have no political donors. Each vote has a $ value – $3.38 per first preference vote. This goes to the candidate, and for the major party candidates, this money goes to the party – not the candidate. As an independent, this vote value comes back to me.

To be eligible for this money, I need to secure at least 4% of the vote. I am hoping (really hoping) that the cost of the campaign is covered by the first preference vote count value.

Why are you not preferencing?

Simple, I don’t support any of the major parties. If I set up a preference deal with any of them, then I am saying I like them more than the other ones – which would be a lie.

How does a “No Preference Deal” vote work?

Simple – you vote 1 – Andrew Williams
Then you vote 2 – for the candidate of the party that you would want to govern Australia.

This way, I don’t end up in the top two candidates, then your vote goes to your preference.

This way I can honestly say that I am a true independent.

Who will Andrew Williams be listing as the party that you would support with your individual vote.

At this point, I really don’t know. I will want to see the policies and announcements to work out who will be the best to represent me (Andrew Williams) and my family.

Each voter should make that decision for their circumstances and that is not my call to make for you – other than giving you an opportunity to send a message to the major parties and determine you own preference.