LABOR'S candidate for the seat of Wannon says he's facing a David and Goliath battle but is confident he can win the safe Liberal seat.
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Gilbert Wilson will follow in the footsteps of his father Keith Wilson who stood for the Labor Party in 1975 and 1980 against former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser.
Mr Gilbert said he was a fifth-generation Portland resident and it was time Wannon had a local voice to represent the constituents.
"Over the years I wasn't really planning on standing (for federal government)," he said.
"It finally got to me that we in Wannon need a local voice. I know the area and will stand up for what I believe in and what the community needs.
"We need to change this seat from being a safe Liberal seat to a Labor seat to gain the extra attention, particularly in a financial sense, because we miss out.
"It's a David versus Goliath proposition, but I believe I can win the seat. I think people are starting to become aware of the lack of attention to communities across the country."
Mr Wilson has been a Glenelg Shire councillor since 2002 and has served as Mayor three times. "I suppose I can say I've done my apprenticeship with local government," he said. "I've been brought up with the Labor traditions and outlook. My father was a 26-year councillor with the Portland City Council."
Mr Wilson said he was very concerned by the loss of work at Portland's Keppel Prince and it was an injustice to the electorate that renewables were being imported from overseas.
Mr Wilson said the federal government also needed to implement a national anti-corruption commission.
"All the states and territories, both Liberal and Labor governments, they all have anti-corruption commissions in differing formats but our national government does not have anything like that and I think the government has been sitting on their hands," he said. "In this day and age it's critical that we do have an anti-corruption body at the peak of our government."
He said coronavirus restrictions would make it difficult to campaign and it would depend on when the election was called as to how much he could meet community members. "I think it's very important that I do get out and meet as many of the people of Wannon as I can," he said.
He said once he was formally nominated he intended to take a leave of absence from Glenelg council.
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