‘A different way of doing politics’: Sydney independents reach out to female voters

Allegra Spender, an independent running in Wentworth, is attracting support from women in business such as the owner of The Salon in Clovelly. Photograph: Anne Davies/The Guardian

In the pink enveloping walls of The Salon in Clovelly, the hairdresser Ash Croker has assembled a group of businesswomen who usually attend her eastern suburbs salon for balayage, foils or a trim. They’ve come to meet Allegra Spender, the independent candidate for Wentworth, whose campaign is engendering a frisson of interest among female voters and gaining high-profile support from leading women in the electorate.

The latest is Rowena Danziger, the former head of the elite private girls’ school Ascham in Darling Point, where Spender was head girl.