Western Sydney Community (WSC), officially known as Dai Le & Frank Carbone W.S.C., is an Australian political party founded in 2023 by independent MP Dai Le and Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone. The party plans to contest electorates in the Greater Western Sydney region at the next federal election.[4]
Western Sydney Community Dai Le & Frank Carbone W.S.C. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | WSC |
| Founders | |
| Founded | 8 May 2023 |
| Registered | 8 August 2023 |
| Headquarters | Canley Vale, New South Wales, Australia[1] |
| Ideology | Western Sydney localism[2][3] |
| Colours | Pink |
| House of Representatives[a] | 1 / 151
|
| Senate | 0 / 76
|
| Fairfield City Council | 10 / 13
|
The party was known as the Dai Le & Frank Carbone Network (DLFCN) from its formation in May 2023 until July 2024.[5] Before its establishment, Carbone said that he thought of naming the party "A Western Voice".[6]
History
editFormation
editLe was formerly a member of the New South Wales Liberal Party until 2016, when she was suspended for 10 years by the party for running against the endorsed liberal candidate for Mayor of Fairfield City, Joe Molluso.[7] She was elected as a federal Independent member for Fowler in 2022.[8] She also formed the Australian Women's Party in 2019. As of July 2024, Le is also concurrently a councillor of Fairfield City Council, having been first elected in 2012.[9]
Carbone was formerly a member of the New South Wales Labor Party until 2016. He was a Councillor of Fairfield City Council between 2008 and 2012, before he was popularly elected as Mayor and has served in this position ever since.[4][10]
The party's federal registration was approved by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on 8 August 2023, with the abbreviation "Frank Carbone".[1]
Name change
editOn 3 July 2024, the party announced it would change its name to "Western Sydney Community".[11] Two days later on 5 July, the party officially applied with the AEC to change its name to "Dai Le & Frank Carbone W.S.C.", proposing the abbreviation "Frank Carbone Western Sydney Community".[12]
Local government
editAustralian Women's Party | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation |
|
| Founder | Dai Le |
| Founded | 29 April 2019 |
| Membership (2021) | 200 |
Carbone and Le both have their own groups at Fairfield City Council elections, with Le forming a registered party (the Australian Women's Party, abbreviated on the ballot as "Dai Le") in April 2019.[13] However, they have formed an alliance on council.[14][15][16]
At the 2021 election, Frank Carbone's ticket received 42.5% of the vote and the Women's Party received 20.2% of the vote.[17][18]
Ideals
editSince the party's founding, the ideals espoused by Le and Carbone have had an emphasis on the Western Sydney region, a majority Labor-aligned area.[19] Le stated to the Guardian Australia in May, following the party's creation, "Our people... pay tolls and taxes, and yet the money doesn't come back into building services and infrastructure for our community, we need to come together and build a stronger western Sydney voice for our community." Further adding: "The end goal is to have representation for western Sydney, from people who are actually from western Sydney, live in western Sydney, understand the issues of western Sydney".[20]
Party co-founder Frank Carbone, in an interview with Sydney's 2GB, said: "Ultimately we're here for the people in the western suburbs, and, you know, the western suburbs is one of the largest economies in Australia and we just feel that a lot more needs to be done to actually improve the quality of life of people who live out here..."[6]
Notes
edit- ^ Le continues to sit as an independent despite being a member of the party.
References
edit- ^ a b "Registration of a political party Dai Le & Frank Carbone Network" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. 8 August 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 August 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
- ^ Knott, Matthew (8 May 2023). "Dai Le, Frank Carbone form own political party to target western Sydney". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment. ISSN 0312-6315. OCLC 226369741. Archived from the original on 11 August 2023.
- ^ Rachwani, Mostafa; Rose, Tamsin (14 May 2023). "Independent MP Dai Le looks to spin success in western Sydney into new political movement". Guardian Australia. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023.
- ^ a b "Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone and Fowler MP Dai Le to form Western Sydney-focused 'anti-teals' party". The Daily Telegraph. News Corp Australia. 8 May 2023.
- ^ "Muslim Vote movement targeting federal Labor seats to announce two candidates for Western Sydney". ABC News. 4 July 2024. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone and independent Member for Fowler, Dai Le, have renamed their self-titled political party (formerly the Dai Le and Frank Carbone Network) to 'Western Sydney Community', which will be registered by the Australian Electoral Commission this week.
- ^ a b "Fairfield Mayor and Independent MP launch party for Western Sydney". 2GB (Interview). Interviewed by Deborah Knight. Nine Radio. 9 May 2023. Archived from the original on 9 May 2023.
- ^ "Liberal Party doles out 10-year suspension after councillor's independent mayor bid". ABC News. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Ms Dai Le MP". www.aph.gov.au. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Councillor Dai Le". www.fairfieldcity.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Mayor Frank Carbone". www.fairfieldcity.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Labor's latest threat in Western Sydney revealed as Muslim voter campaign ramps up". The Daily Telegraph. 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
The pair have also renamed their political party, choosing the title Western Sydney Community, replacing the name Dai Le and Frank Carbone Network, in a move to swallow up more of the region's votes.
- ^ "Dai Le & Frank Carbone Network" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. 5 July 2024. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
- ^ Silmalis, Linda (6 November 2021). "The Sauce: One third of Australian Women's Party candidates are men". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
- ^ Raue, Ben (14 June 2022). "Booth map of the day: Fowler". The Tally Room. Archived from the original on 9 September 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
- ^ Raue, Ben. "Fairfield council election, 2024". The Tally Room. Archived from the original on 8 September 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
- ^ "What do Greater Sydney's council candidates really think? We asked all of them". Sydney Morning Herald. 10 September 2024. Archived from the original on 11 September 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
- ^ "City of Fairfield". ABC News. 4 December 2021. Archived from the original on 27 June 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
- ^ Rolfe, John (7 December 2021). "Frank Carbone's independents take control of Fairfield City Council, routing Labor". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 September 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
- ^ Knott, Matthew (8 May 2023). "Dai Le, Frank Carbone form own political party to target western Sydney". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment. ISSN 0312-6315. OCLC 226369741. Archived from the original on 11 August 2023.
- ^ Rachwani, Mostafa; Rose, Tamsin (14 May 2023). "Independent MP Dai Le looks to spin success in western Sydney into new political movement". Guardian Australia. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023.