Housing and climate change key issues in South Australia's most marginal seat

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The seat of Sturt in Adelaide’s eastern suburbs has been a Liberal stronghold for decades. But Labor has had the seat in its sight more recently. In 2022, Liberal James Stevens held on to what's now become South Australia’s most marginal seat.

Transcript

00:00The seat of Sturt covers Adelaide's eastern suburbs and during school holidays a local

00:08drawcard is Thorndon Park Reserve. While parents and grandparents let their children burn off

00:13some energy the ABC asked them what issues will sway their vote this election. Nana is

00:20an urban planner and housing is high on her list of priorities. The supply of housing

00:25is a big thing it's not just the demand side but also the supply side. Retired teacher Kay wants

00:31more focus on improving the health system but addressing climate change is also a high priority.

00:38I think we should be doing as much as we can. I know people say that Australia is a small

00:43country and we can't make a big impact but if everybody just said well I can't make an

00:50impact the whole world would go to pieces. Retirees

00:55Margaret and Don both want long-term policy and planning not short-term promises.

01:00I suppose in this respect the education system and I mean that's where our country is likely

01:08to have a more prosperous future if we invest in our young people's education.

01:14Sturt has been held by the Liberals for decades but what was once a safe seat in 2022 ended

01:20with a margin of just 0.5%. Candidates this time around are the Liberal incumbent James

01:27Stevens, lawyer Claire Clutterham for Labor, the Greens Katie McCusker who stripped plenty

01:33of votes from the Liberals last time and a Teal candidate, Dr Verity Cooper.

01:38While the Greens vote is growing and there is interest in a Teal, the major parties believe

01:44that Sturt will still boil down to a two-party contest. The state seat of Dunstan, which sits

01:49inside Sturt, flipped to Labor in a by-election last year. And questions remain about whether

01:54the traditionally moderate Liberal area will embrace a more conservative Peter Dutton. But

02:00while Labor is quietly optimistic, the Liberals believe they can retain the seat, saying the Greens

02:06and Teal candidates will split any vote against them.

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