Hi, I'm Adam Bandt, leader of the Australian Greens. Firstly, thank you so much for being
part of our movement and for helping us get the word out about what the Greens are fighting for
this election. You, the messenger, are incredibly powerful. Every time you talk to someone in your
community about our values and our vision for a cleaner, fairer world, we grow our movement and we
help people see that their friends and neighbours share their values and are voting Greens. Here
are some of the most important things to keep in mind when communicating with friends and family,
whether that’s face-to-face or online. Remember before you start that it’s okay to feel nervous.
While the media love to portray the Greens stuck in a pipe dream, in reality though,
our values and our vision have wide support across the population. To start the conversation,
let the person you’re talking to know that you’re interested in having a chat about the
federal election and what it means to them, to you and your community.
Some of your friends or family may be hesitant at first to talk about politics, but it’s important
to let them know why it matters to you. Think of the key reasons that you’re supporting the Greens.
By communicating these clearly, you lay out the groundwork for your conversation. You might
talk about voting Green because you’re anxious about the climate crisis, and you believe that
putting [the] Greens in the balance of power is our best shot at getting serious climate action.
Maybe you’re passionate about freeing the refugees that are trapped in Nauru, Papua
New Guinea and even in the middle of Melbourne. Or maybe you’re sick of everyone struggling to cope
while billionaires and big corporations get a free pass, and you know that the Greens
will make them pay their fair share of tax so we can get dental and mental health into Medicare,
build enough affordable homes in good locations and provide secure, well-paid jobs for everyone.
It’s easier to have an honest and open conversation when you’re speaking from
the heart and sharing your values, and it’ll make it easier for the other person to open up
about how they feel as well. As it turns out, many people align with the Greens’ values and vision
much more than they think. We know from years of door-knocking, phone banking and our own research,
what the barriers and misconceptions are that hold people back from voting [Green],
as well as how we can overcome them. Firstly, especially at this election, lots of people are
desperate for change and feel obligated to vote Labor because they think a vote for the Greens
would somehow help the Liberals get re-elected. If someone brings this up,
explain that this is a common misconception, then reassure them that the Greens will not support the
Liberals; we want to kick the Liberals out. And in fact, this election is closer than they think,
and their vote is incredibly powerful. If just a few hundred people change their vote, we can kick
out the Libs and put the Greens in [the] balance of power. Make sure to repeat these messages over
and over again, because for too long, too many people haven’t realised the power of their vote.
And also, our preferential voting system means that if your first pick doesn’t get elected,
your vote goes to your second preference, and so on. So for example, if someone votes Green,
preferences Labor [2nd], as long as they put the Liberals last, their vote
won't go to the Liberals, which means they can vote for the party that their values align with.
It’s also possible that someone will think that the Greens only care about climate. If that’s
the case, remind them that we are tackling the climate crisis and the inequality crisis, and just
as we're passionate about tackling the climate crisis, we'll bring that same passion to tackle
the inequality crisis and the challenge[s] people are feeling today. You can use this to talk about
some of the policies that you’re most passionate about, like getting dental and mental health into
Medicare, lifting JobSeeker above the poverty line, or making public schools genuinely free.
Finally, some people may feel that all politicians are equally bad, and that no matter who they
vote for, it won’t make a difference. Anyone can understand why some people feel this way; politics
in this country is cooked and our standard for political leaders is one of abysmal incompetence.
But it’s critical to point out why politics doesn’t work in our communities’ best interests;
it’s because Liberal and Labor both take millions in donations from the billionaires and big
corporations. These parties are more interested, then, in helping their cashed-up donors than our
community, and that goes against the very essence of their job as public servants in a democracy:
to serve the people. Talking about politics with friends and family can be difficult and
it takes time, but it’s worth it. The best person to convince your friends and family to vote Greens
is you! Not a TV ad, not something they see online, not even me in a video – you are
the single best person to convince your community to vote Green this election.
We're living in a time where we’re battered with crisis after crisis, and yet we don’t have
elected leaders who we can depend on. It’s time to change that, and we better get everyone involved.