Randwick Council votes to consider ban on election corflutes on power poles

A local Sydney council has voted to consider a total ban on election corflutes on all public infrastructure, citing “visual pollution” and a perceived “impost on campaigns” for the move.

Randwick Council voted 9-5 on Tuesday night to pass a motion from Greens councillor Masoomeh Asgari for council staff to report on reducing election waste material and banning corflutes on council property, including parking poles.

“In the past three years we have had two federal elections, a state election and a local government election and in each case large amounts of waste have been produced in the form of corflutes and paper (how-to-votes and flyers) in order to inform voters about candidates, their policies and how they should vote,” the motion states.

“Corflute waste is a particular issue in Randwick. Ausgrid have banned them on telegraph poles, so the main display structures are council’s parking poles and the like.

“This annoys residents due to the visual pollution, the inconvenience of placement and the litter, including from plastic ties.

“Informing voters is essential in a democracy but it’s time to investigate how this can be done with less waste.”

The potential ban follows a burst of corflute controversy in the May 3 federal election, including furious debate over where exactly corflutes are permitted.

Footage of federal independent MP Monique Ryan’s husband Peter Jordan pulling down a corflute of Liberal challenger Amelia Hamer went viral on social media during the heated Kooyong contest in Melbourne.

The footage shows Mr Jordan walking away with the Hamer placard, with a Liberal Party supporter pursuing him.

Mr Jordan claims the sign had been illegally placed on public land.

“I’m taking the sign down … it’s on public land … I’m not saying who I am,” Mr Jordan says in the video.

Responding to the kerfuffle, the Australian Electoral Commission said it did not regulate the placement of political signage.

“Signage on public land is generally a matter for local council,” the AEC said.

Later, Mr Jordan apologised for the blow up.

“I unreservedly apologise for removing the sign. It was a mistake,” he said.

“I believed the sign was illegally placed, but I should have reported my concerns to council.”

South Australia, meanwhile, has banned corflutes from public roads, trees and poles in state and federal elections.

Randwick, which takes in Sydney’s eastern beach suburbs, sits within the federal electorates of Wentworth and Kingsford Smith.

Liberal councillor Christie Hamilton voted against the motion on Tuesday night, telling NewsWire candidate posters served an important democratic function.

“I don’t think we should ban them everywhere,” she said.

“They trigger for people that there is an election coming. It is up to the parties and candidates to do all they can do to put their candidates out there and it needs to be visual.

“It can’t just be words on a page, they need to see who the person is. And if they see them on the street, they can come up and talk to them.

“It’s part of the democratic process.”

Ms Hamilton said Ms Asgari’s motion had come about because of Greens anger over their corflutes being taken down during campaigns.

“Everyone gets their corflutes taken down,” she said.

“(Liberal Wentworth candidate) Ro Knox had her corflutes taken down. There’s nothing you can do about it.

“She (Ro Knox) put up funny stickers saying, ‘please don’t steal my corflutes’. You try to combat it with a bit of humour.”

A report on the motion is expected within six months and Ms Hamilton said that vote on the report’s recommendation would be the crucial one to watch for.

“When it comes back with the recommendation, that’s when the real fight will start,” she said.

“I don’t think Labor (councillors) will do it.”