In the ultra-marginal electorate of Chisholm, in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, every vote counts. So much so that both Liberal MP Gladys Liu, who holds the seat by just 1,100 votes, and Labor’s candidate, Carina Garland, spent hours outside the Holy Family Parish church in Mount Waverley on Monday, introducing themselves to early voters.
Both women wear black sneakers but take different approaches. Liu stands closest to the road and begins waving at people as soon as they begin their walk up the driveway, towards the gauntlet of volunteers standing outside the mid-century church.
“Hi I’m Gladys, how are you? Are you voting today?” she says.
Liu attempts to shake the hand of everyone who walks past – including teachers on their way to the adjacent primary school (she knows a couple by name), parents on pick-up duty and their young children. Even those who make it quite clear they don’t intend to vote for her are greeted warmly.
Anyone who stops is handed a how-to-vote flyer. “Vote Liberal for a strong economy, strong future,” she says, rarely deviating from the line.
Garland has fewer, but seemingly more significant, exchanges. An aged-care worker approaches her to tell her she has her support. They chat for a couple of minutes about Labor’s plan to raise aged-care workers’ wages.
Another woman tells Garland their families attend the same church. They launch into a discussion about the need for funding certainty for the ABC.
Meanwhile, a young Labor volunteer stands behind Liu.
“Vote Labor for a better future,” the woman says, before ushering voters over to Garland. “Here’s our candidate.”
As an indicator of how important the seat is for Labor, the party’s deputy leader, Richard Marles, arrives to hand out flyers for half an hour and pose for photos. (Garland will go on to attend a press conference with Anthony Albanese and the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, the next day).
Several voters stop to chat after recognising Liu, who has a high profile, particularly among Chinese voters in the electorate, which covers suburbs including Ashwood, Burwood, Box Hill, Glen Waverley, Mount Waverley and Wheelers Hill, as well as parts of Blackburn and Chadstone.
About 56% of people in the electorate were born overseas, including almost 13% from China, making it one of the most diverse in the country. Weekly wage and home ownership rates largely reflect the national average.
When elected in 2019, the Liu became the first overseas-born, Chinese woman to win a seat in the federal parliament’s lower house.
Since then, she has been embroiled in several controversies, including over signs put up at polling booths around Chisholm on election day in 2019 that looked like official AEC signs and directed voters in Chinese that the “correct way” to vote was for the Liberal candidate.
Liu was cleared of any role in creating them. But Garland says it remains a concern of voters.
“I have people coming up to me all just warning me to keep an eye out. I really hate that it eroded people’s trust in our democratic system, because I think we have one of the best in the world,” she says.
“It’s another reason we need an anti-corruption commission, so people’s faith is restored again.”
Garland also cites aged-care conditions, the rising cost of living and Australia’s lack of manufacturing self-sufficiency as issues repeatedly raised by voters.
But Liu says the voters she has spoken to are more optimistic.
“People are happy with how the Morrison government has been handling the economy and the low unemployment rate at the moment. People are happy because they’ve got a job,” she says.
“They are glad that the kids can go back to school and parents can get back to the new normal.”
The voters Guardian Australia spoke to in Chisholm were not particularly engaged in the campaign, or politics generally.
Glen Waverley resident Kiki, who did not want her surname published, isn’t familiar with Liu, Garland or Albanese, though she knows Scott Morrison.
“I don’t hate him, I don’t really like him, I just accept him,” she says as she enjoys breakfast at Mocha Jo’s cafe in Glen Waverley.
“It’s a hard position he’s in, but in the end he’s the one that gets blamed if something happens.”
She doesn’t know who she will vote for yet.
Sitting at a nearby table is Peter Killeen. He says he hasn’t been following the campaign closely but will be voting for Labor.
“I used to vote Liberal until the last election but now I can’t because they couldn’t lie straight in bed,” he says.
Burwood resident Roman, who also asked for his full name not to be used, credits Morrison with keeping the economy going during the pandemic but says many workers have been forgotten, including those in his industry, the performing arts.
“And he’s loud and he’s boisterous and I don’t know if I can take any more of that,” he says outside Box Hill town hall’s early voting centre.
Roman was a volunteer with Labor’s 2019 candidate for Chisholm, Jennifer Yang. He says her campaign was launched in the same building with much fanfare – it was the first time both Labor and the Liberals ran female Chinese-Australians in the seat.
“This time it’s been more mild,” he says, admitting he doesn’t know much about Garland, who is of Italian background, reflecting the older migrant communities in the area.
At Jells Park, friends Emma and Lorraine, who both live in Glen Waverley, say they have election fatigue.
“It [the campaign] is too long,” Lorraine says.
“It gets a bit childish, this snapping at each other,” Emma adds.
Lorraine hasn’t made up her mind on who she is voting for, but says Morrison has done a “damn good job” despite the challenges of the pandemic.
Emma agrees. “It would have been difficult for anybody,” she says.
The duo, however, have differing views on Liu: Emma says she’s “not a fan” while Lorraine says she likes her.
“Let me put it this way, she’s up and about,” Lorraine says.
Both the candidates are confident.
“Everyone has been really encouraging,” Garland says. “Of course, you’re not going to get every vote, but it does feel very positive towards Labor, and it’s just been so nice of people to go out of their way to let me know that they want to support me and they hope that Labor wins, that means a lot.”
The former union official says she’ll be at the early voting centre until it closes at 8pm. She also visited Box Hill town hall earlier in the day.
“I’ll be doing this every day for the next two weeks,” she says. “Every vote matters.”
Liu says she’s been at the early voting centre since 7.45am and will also stay until it closes. She says she’s also had a positive reception.
“I know the local community, they know me, a lot of people just come up to me and say, ‘Hi Gladys’, without me introducing myself,” she says.
“They say, ‘I’ve met you at the Glen, I’ve met you at Burwood One, I’ve met you at Hamilton Place.’ It’s reassuring that they know who I am.”
