THREE young people who lent their faces to their various political campaigns last week have reported back in good spirits.
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Only one of the three came out with the title, with Pru Goward regaining her seat for a third term and campaign manager Sam Rowland adding another win to his repertoire.
“It was a great experience. My job was so much easier than what it could have been because Pru was such a great candidate,” Mr Rowland said.
“It was a big learning experience but again it’s not my first campaign, I taught myself how to campaign in 2012 and then spent 18 months working on Angus Taylor’s campaign and subsequently took the reigns of Pru’s campaign. I enjoyed every minute of it without a doubt.
“It was full-on with a lot of 12-hour days for the last month but we had a great support team around us, a lot of new volunteers and people who have supported Pru, Angus and myself in the past. It was positive and we definitely finished on a high.”
Still, Labor’s Maddy Weeks and The Greens’ Nick Calleja aren’t disheartened.
Instead, the pair echo a heightened passion.
“It was certainly an eyeopener for how it all went down,” Mr Calleja said on Monday.
“It certainly has gotten me more fired up about the whole process. The best part about it was the people I got to work with in that every member or supporter of The Greens are very passionate and giving of their time. It’s very positive to have such a great group of people to work with.”
Mr Calleja said he would happily put his hand up for a campaign manager role if the opportunity was to arise in the future.
But, for now, The Greens will look at gathering interest for the establishment of a Goulburn Young Greens group.
“We hope there is enough people up to the age of 30 who are interested enough in politics to commit some time to a group like that. If there’s a demand for it we are certainly keen to get that up and running,” he explained.
“It’s an ongoing project and one we are going to hopefully dedicate a bit more time for throughout this year.
“We’re working on it and it’s something to definitely watch this space for.”
Seventeen-year-old Miss Weeks admits she isn’t really sure what the local Labor branch is up to from here on out.
All she knows is she wants to stay involved.
“I’ve learnt so much, not just from being in the campaign but just from talking to people at pre-poll and on the election day,” Miss Weeks said.
“I found everyone to be really friendly, even the people from The Greens and the Liberal Party on election day, I found I had great conversation with them.
“I learnt that no matter what political persuasion you may have we are all trying to work towards a better Goulburn and trying to get better services for the region. It’s been a lot of fun and I’ll definitely stay involved.”