ANDREW Gee has no intention of stepping aside as the Member for Calare after the results of the Voice referendum showed how out-of-step he was with the views of his constituents.
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There was overwhelming support for the "no" campaign across Australia, with 61 per cent of voters writing "no" on their ballot paper, and the numbers were even higher in Calare.
Nearly 72 per cent voted "no" in the electorate whose representative felt so strongly about the Voice to Parliament that he sensationally quit his own party in December, 2022 and became an independent.
Mr Gee was a vocal "yes" campaigner in the lead up to the October 14, 2023 referendum, but his argument did not sway many of his constituents.
His former party, the Nationals, predicted the outcome and preemptively called on Mr Gee to resign if Calare voted "no".
But Mr Gee plans to get on with the job despite the outcome.
"I'm not focused on party political nastiness, but rather getting on with the job of meeting the challenges our region faces and helping to secure its bright future," he said.
He also stands by his position on the Voice and his decision to leave the Nationals.
"When I left the National Party, I made it clear that the three reasons for doing so were that the party is a shadow of its former self, it's abject failure to provide adequate disaster assistance to our region, and the Voice," he said.
"Everyone has had a chance to have their say and the votes are in.
"In our democracy we all get to make an individual choice. I stand by mine, which I made public before the last election, and I respect others making and standing by theirs."
Mr Gee remains passionate about the plight of Indigenous people in Australia and wants to continue down the path of reconciliation.
"Sadly, the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians still exists in so many ways and closing it remains one of the great challenges our country faces," he said.
"I hope that Australians everywhere can come together and find ways to pick up the torch of reconciliation and carry it forward."
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Rachel Chamberlain
I have been a journalist at the Western Advocate since 2014.
I have been a journalist at the Western Advocate since 2014.
