2020 is a year like no other, the changes that COVID-19 has forced on us have ranged across every aspect of our lives, not least in the way politics is conducted. The upcoming local government elections in October pose a unique challenge for perspective candidates for the 31 municipalities in Melbourne and 79 in Victoria as a whole.
Advice from a veteran
Kris Pavlidis, a three-time mayor of Whittlesea, has served 20 years in local government: five as a council employee, and the next 15 as a councillor,will not be contesting the election this year but she is making her considerable experience available to candidates who wanted to enter the field local government in their areas.
“We have been working at different levels such as devising strategies, networking and the media, developing public profiles, working out campaign slogans and identifying the key advocacy issues,” Ms Palvidis said of her mentoring role.
“I talk to them and lift their spirits when they get trolled on social media. I advise them how to deal with other candidates.”
“I first ran in 2005 and now it is a completely different world. There are different socio-economic conditions and a different political landscape.”
A local government candidate needed to know the demographic profile of their constituency, the age and gender profiles and political affiliations of the electorate.
“You need to understand your grassroots,” Ms Pavlidis said, adding that the demographic profiles of some local government areas (LGAs) was changing with the rise of new and emerging communities where their income brackets, higher education levels created a different set of expectations and political outlooks.
She said that COVID-19 was creating a new set of issues for the public, such as financial fears and loss of jobs as well as social and health concerns. Migrant communities for whom English was not the main language were the most vulnerable.
“The COVID environment and impending restrictions are far from an optimum scenario for any campaign. In local government the community neighbourhood networking and grass roots connectivity can have a huge impact on the success of a candidate’s profiling and candidature,” Ms Pavlidis said.
“The challenges of campaigning ‘from a distance’, through the telephone and virtual discussions will engage particular cohorts better than many others.”
She said in some areas, the political parties did not offer endorsements but it was important for voters to know the political leanings of the candidates – whether they leaned towards economic considerations first or more towards social justice concerns.
“As a candidate you need to show that you have a holistic approach to the community to be able to represent the whole community. You cannot be just about one issue – there are so many more issues that will come up in council meetings that you will be exposed very quickly (if you stand for one issue). You need to know all the issues and the priorities affecting your ward,” she said.
The role of a councillor does make demands on a person’s time. While there were the monthly council meetings, there were also other meetings and events to attend during the week particularly for committee work.
“Local government is about than just the three Rs – Roads, Rates and Rubbish. There is so much more to consider. Local government is the level of government that is closest to the people.
“I go shopping in the area and people will stop and talk to me and talk about their needs. That is how it is – you are not removed from the people. You shop in the same shops, your children go to the same schools,” she said.
She said time management was also very important to balance the public and private life of a councillor.
“I used to take my kids with me to council meetings and they are so over it now,” she said.
As a Greek Australian serving a wider community, she said the values that she learnt from her parents had benefited her in her work. “Filotimo” is a key value.
“Filotimo means you look after the other and it is about respect and integrity. Integrity is the be all and end all (of a politician) it means you can be proud of how you carry yourself. Never compromise your integrity for power, titles or gain.
“Greeks have a good value base, they are diligent workers. Our parents dealt with racism and had to compromise their ideals to take up any job to support their families,” said Ms Pavlidis. “Greeks are very empathetic to the suffering of other people. They grew up on the stories of the sacrifices of their families.
“If you are diligent and astute, you will see the opportunities to have an impact that will affect your constituents. If you can see the wider issues, you may be able to push a policy and allocate a budget to roll out the policy – it is a great high that makes it all worthwhile,” she said.
“Local government is about than just the three Rs – Roads, Rates and Rubbish. There is so much more to consider.
Kris Pavlidis
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Helping people
Emily Dimitriadis is running for the South-East Ward of Darebin City Council. It will be her first venture into politics. On Wednesdays to Fridays she works as a migration lawyer and she spends the rest of her working week as an emergency pharmacist at the Northern Hospital Epping.
“As a result of COVID-19 I was upskilled to an intensive care pharmacist’” she said. Her experiences have given her unique insight into the effects of the pandemic.
“I want to be sure that after COVID-19 is over, I can be there to help with the recovery. I have seen COVID affecting the sick and their families. I have seen the changes the hospital underwent to ensure the safety of people,” said Ms Dimitriadis.
“I have seen the decline in jobs and business lost and I want to make sure that we recover well.”
COVID-19 has stifled the usual canvassing process that candidates would use to spread their message to the voters. She is a Labor supporter but the party has not endorsed Darebin so that she is running her campaign on her own resources.
“I am making a lot of phone calls and social media postings, I am sending out emails and flyers asking people to spread the word.
“My husband, Sean, has been very supportive and my family have been good at telling people that I am running for council,” she said.
Ms Dimitriadis said she hoped that the restrictions would ease before the elections so that she would be able to reach more people directly (while still keeping the 1.5m social distance) and spread the word that she is running for council.
“It is the first time I am running but I have been thinking about it for a long time. As a pharmacist and a lawyer I help people on an individual level. As a councillor I would be helping on a community level.”
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Helping migrants
Sofia Kotanidis is the director and principal broker of an insurance company in Reservoir in Darebin. She hopes to represent the North-West ward of Reservoir should she win in October.
Over the years she has worked in the Refugee Settlement Program and has volunteered her services in fundraising and helping refugees, promoting multiculturalism and is a member of the Darebin Ethnic Communities Council.
“These are extraordinary times – we would (under normal conditions) be talking to people in the shopping centres, door knocking and street stalls,” Ms Kotanidis said.
“Unfortunately, with the restrictions on us, the only way we can inform our residents is through social media, radio, letter dropping (when we are out of Stage-4 restrictions) and, of course, newspapers like Neos Kosmos.”
Ms Kotanids said her migrant background meant that she understood the many challenges of migration and enable to help migrants overcome the difficulties they faced.
“The advantage of speaking the Greek language is that I can connect without first-generation Greeks,” she said.
Starting young
Angelica Panopoulos is the Greens candidate for Moreland’s North-West Ward. A lifelong Glenroy local, she is a fourth-year university student studying law, international relations and the Greek language. She has worked in retail and fast food and has done voluntary work in high school and university.
“I am getting involved in the local government elections because I have seen firsthand what changes can be brought about when you have elected representatives who genuinely care, listen to their communities and don’t take any votes for granted,” Ms Panopoulos said.
“I have also seen that a lot of people don’t exactly know what it is that local councils do. They think it’s only ‘roads, rubbish and rates’, when in fact councils are responsible for our libraries, community hubs, specific services and programs for our young people, older residents and newly arrived migrants, and our parks.
“We need to open up communication between councillors and the community to ensure that the best possible outcomes are achieved.”
She said that the postal voting for the elections has turned out to be a safe option in the current COVID-19 situation as it ensured that people could safely participate in the democratic process.
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“Every voter will receive a ballot pack that contains the ballot and statements from each of the candidates in their ward. This allows everyone to read through the statements from the comfort of their own home and make an informed decision on the candidate that has the best vision for their local area and will best represent their interests.”
As an Australian of Greek descent she said her grandparents had migrated to Australia following the Greek Civil War. They could not speak English and did not know what the future held for them.
“It is because of the struggles of my grandparents and their efforts that I have had so many opportunities in life made available to me.
“The value of filoxenia has been instilled in me by my parents. The very definition of filoxenia is to welcome a stranger with kindness and open arms. This is how we should be treating the migrants and refugees that come to Australia today.
“I also know that our first-generation Greek migrant community has many specific needs. Councils need to provide age and culturally and linguistically appropriate services and programs to all residents. Your level of English should not preclude you from being involved in your local area,” said Ms Panopoulos.
