By Noosa Mp Sandy Bolton
Noosa, we worked and fought hard to keep Noosa independent – AND WE DID IT!
How proud I am of this community. In the spirit which has seen us come through fires and pandemics, you have, through your vote, sent some very clear messages.
Your voice has been heard.
That you deserve to be respected and will no longer accept the behaviours of candidates or political parties that utilise electioneering designed to misinform.
That you will not tolerate being ignored, or taken for granted, ever again.
You said through your vote many things: to keep the momentum going; to retain our uniqueness; and to be connected through shared aspirations.
And to get on with the job.
Now, for the next four years we can continue to do that, together.
How very humbled I have been with the outpouring of support through this time, and to be given the opportunity to finish what I started – and to commence on the next priorities.
A massive “thank you ” to everyone who made this possible – volunteers, campaign workers, advisers, the whole ‘Teal Army’ and everyone who went to the polls – how appreciative I am of everything you do, have done, and that you aspire to. There are no words, only deep respect and an ongoing commitment to work hard for you.
To be elected again to represent this community, in its diversity, passion and at times, opposing viewpoints is the greatest of honours, and a privilege unlike any other. Love Noosa? More than you can imagine!
To those candidates and parties who campaigned with respect for our community, thank you and blessings. Your efforts as part of creating elections free of tokenisms, poor behaviors and deliberate deceptions have been deeply appreciated.
To those who followed a different path, please reconsider your tactics next time. As I have said, our community deserves much better, and our expectations will be even higher next time.
Again, thank you Noosa. With incredible memories, as well a croaky voice from pre-poll and election day, I will take a couple of days out whilst we are still in caretaker, however I’m look forward to seeing you online and offline, on the streets, and especially in preparation for what will be an extremely busy Christmas.
We have much to celebrate – and do!
