Victorian Electoral Commission Seeks Supreme Court Injunction Against Advance Group
The VEC is seeking a Supreme Court injunction against lobby group Advance for breaching campaign rules during the Prahran byelection amid significant electoral tensions.
The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) has sought a Supreme Court injunction against the right-wing lobby group Advance for repeatedly putting up posters that breach campaign rules during the tense Prahran byelection.
Tens of thousands of voters cast their ballots on Saturday in dual byelections occurring in the Greens-held seat in inner Melbourne and in the Labor-held electorate of Werribee in the west.
Advance has helped finance a campaign against the Greens in Prahran, where candidate and environmental engineer Angelica Di Camillo faces a challenging contest to retain the seat for her minor party. Liberal candidate Rachel Westaway, who was a senior member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal until recently, stands a genuine chance of flipping the seat after swapping preferences with ex-Labor MP turned independent candidate Tony Lupton.
This week, The Age revealed that the VEC is investigating a complaint from the Greens alleging that Advance was using federal donations in the state campaign, which would be a breach of the law. Advance has refuted this allegation.
