On the side of a busy highway intersection, battling to keep wasps away from the egg and bacon rolls, Bridget Archer doesn't necessarily seem the type to create national headlines
"Rogue MP", "rebel MP" and "badass" are just some of the titles that have been bestowed on the member for Bass during her first term in federal politics.
But today she's far from the corridors of Parliament House, handing out a free barbecue breakfast to tradies, parents and other commuters on the East Tamar Highway.
"I'm a pretty reserved sort of person anyway and take my time to find my place," she said.
Reflecting on a "tumultuous" three years in parliament that have included a pandemic, Ms Archer says it's been a "baptism of fire" for a first-term MP.
She's spoken out against her government's cashless welfare card, crossed the floor on a federal integrity body and religious discrimination legislation, and recently condemned a fellow Tasmanian senator's proposed legislation to exclude transgender people from single-sex sports as "a vanity bill".
Conversation is easy at the highway intersection barbecue — about the weather, the region's lack of free camping — but pleasant chats and a high profile don't guarantee anything in Ms Archer's volatile electorate.
Bass a 'litmus test' for Coalition
Voters in Bass have a habit of booting out sitting MPs. Since 1993 only one sitting federal member has been re-elected.
The Liberals' margin is just 0.4 per cent — the smallest of any Coalition-held seat.
University of Tasmania professor of political science Richard Eccleston said the seat was in play at every election, including this one.
Labor candidate 'fell just short' in 2019
Ms Archer's competition knows all too well how fickle the electorate can be.
Lawyer Ross Hart was elected as the federal member in 2016, before narrowly losing the seat to Ms Archer.
He's re-contesting the seat for the ALP.
"I only missed out by less than 600 votes last time," Mr Hart said.
On the day 7.30 interviews him, Mr Hart is doing a press conference at a playgroup.
Mr Hart is making the cost of living his main talking point, focusing on Launceston's soaring house and rental prices and Labor's plans for social and affordable housing.
He's labelled the Coalition's cut to the fuel excise a one-off solution that's unlikely to deal with cost of living pressures.
"When I talk to people they complain about significant increases in the cost of rent, cost of food, so it's not just the cost of filling up your car with petrol," he said.
"And of course, this has been occurring long before the unfortunate crisis in Ukraine."
Tasmanian voters don't shy away from mavericks
Professor Eccleston said while local candidates often didn't make much of a difference in how people voted for a government or a prime minister, Tasmania had traditionally been different.
"And for that reason we've had a range of mavericks and independents, whether you're looking at Jacqui Lambie or Andrew Wilkie.
The Prime Minister made a point of visiting marginal Tasmanian seats ahead of calling the election, including the seat of Bass and Ms Archer's hometown of George Town, where she was previously the mayor.
"I think most analysts would think that Bridget Archer as a candidate is probably more popular than the Prime Minister," Professor Eccleston said.
"And that's unusual, so I'd be surprised if the Prime Minister has a very high profile in Bass over the course of the election."
Mr Albanese has also visited Bass in recent weeks, including on day one of the campaign.
But his campaigning with Ross Hart was largely overshadowed by the Labor leader’s stumble over the country’s unemployment and cash rates.
"I think Labor would regard Anthony Albanese as a net positive, drawing a clear line in the sand with the 2019 campaign that Labor ran under Bill Shorten, so I think it's inevitable that the Labor leader will spend more time in Bass than the Prime Minister," Professor Eccleston said.
Liberal MP says she would call out bullying
Ms Archer said she was proud of what she'd achieved in her term as a backbencher.
In February, Ms Archer was one of five Liberals who crossed the floor on contentious religious discrimination legislation, concerned it would erode Tasmanian laws and wouldn't extend protections to transgender students.
"People will often say, 'Well, are you disappointed that the government hasn't delivered on an integrity commission?' Yes, sure. But my frustration is not that they haven't delivered — my frustration is why they haven't been able to deliver it.
"And that is because it is so politically contested."
Late last year, after she crossed the floor to force debate on a federal corruption watchdog, photos of Treasurer Josh Frydenberg standing over Ms Archer in the House of Representatives were picked up on social media as proof she was being intimidated.
Ms Archer rejects those suggestions, and says the Treasurer was checking if she was OK.
"Now, there were some things that happened later that might not have been how I would have liked them to play out," she said.
"But right in this moment, I was feeling sort of emotional — the Treasurer was being nice and supportive."
Around that time, Ms Archer says the Prime Minister's office sent her a text message saying Mr Morrison wanted to talk to her, but she responded that she wasn't ready and instead went to Mr Frydenberg's office for a quiet word.
"And then he said, 'Look, I'm going to take you around to the PM. PM wants to see you.' And I felt not quite ready for that."
Ms Archer said that in the meeting were the Prime Minister, Treasurer and Foreign Minister Marise Payne.
"And that was the conversation around, well, what's happening, what's going on? Where are we at? All very reasonable.
"It was really a time issue, which is understandable. But I just think the communication could be better.
"If I felt that I was subjected to bullying or intimidation, I would call that out."
Hart: 'It's not necessary for me to cross the floor'
Ms Archer doesn't intend to toe the party line if she's re-elected.
Ross Hart says there's no Labor policy he disagrees with, but if there was, he'd raise it in caucus.
"It's not necessary for me to cross the floor," he said.
"My party's policies are more aligned with the issues within this electorate."
He's unimpressed with his competitor's decisions to cross the floor.
"The only reason why she's crossed the floor on those issues is because the Liberal Party doesn't represent the people here in northern Tasmania.
"The Liberal member for Bass is not listened to by the Prime Minister of Australia. A vote for Bridget Archer is a vote for Scott Morrison."
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