On a Thursday night in the beachside village of Gerringong on the New South Wales south coast, 40-odd people shuffle into the local town hall. Five weeks out from the state election, a local community group is hosting the first candidate forum for the seat of Kiama.
Labor’s candidate, a former organiser with the journalists union, Katelin McInerney, talks about education funding and cites statistics on stretched local health services. The 12-year-old Coalition government is “tired, out of touch”, she tells the crowd.
