Let's leave nothing in the tank!
Hey guys, I’m Owain, the campaign treasurer.
We're in the final stretch before November 29th, just 15 days to go before the election. It goes without saying that this final stretch will be the most important in the entire campaign. It's easy to get fatigued on the campaign trail, but let's make sure there's nothing left in the tank!
In the 2012 by-election, I was really thrilled to volunteer with the Greens’ campaign. Unfortunately we lost and in the days after I was inconsolable.
I was disappointed because we would not have a truly progressive voice representing us. Worse than that was realising that the count was so close and knowing that I could have done more. If I’d found some extra time to knock on some extra doors, make phone calls to undecided voters, recruit more volunteers, or donated extra money to help fund mailouts or billboards, it might just have made the difference.
When it came to Adam Bandt’s 2013 re-election campaign, I swore I wasn’t going to feel that way. Whatever the result, I wasn’t going to have any regrets.
So I found time and energy I really didn’t have. I dived into conversations that daunted me, and learned as I went. I did things I was sure I couldn’t do. I developed and motivated a team of people to commit to taking on responsibility. I celebrated each success as it happened. It was the most fulfilling project I’ve been involved in. By election night, I had nothing left in the tank. Like a lot of the volunteers, I was exhausted and satisfied to know that I’d done everything I could to make positive change happen regardless of the outcome.
I had a full time job that could be fairly intense at times, a 3 year old daughter who adorably demanded my attention and a pregnant wife who I’d have loved more quality time with. It would have been really easy to opt out, to leave it for someone else to do, someone who had a bit more time, someone who was a natural communicator, someone for whom it might have all been a bit easier.
But on September 7 2013 and in the year that followed, I’ve been glad I didn’t. Adam Bandt was re-elected without preferences to the seat of Melbourne and the Greens made history.
Now, in 2014, we have the chance to make history again in Melbourne, but to do it we need all the active support we can get. This campaign is expected to come down to a handful of votes. To win this we need you. Don’t end up regretful, wondering what difference your efforts might have made.
Join us for the final stretch in the campaign to elect Ellen Sandell and we will ensure an independent voice for Melbourne.
Click here to sign up as a volunteer or here to donate to the campaign.