Ex-Premier Brian Burke reveals secret polling convinced Cook Government to plan strategy to win ‘bogan vote’

The Cook Government has identified a previously under-serviced class of voters which it believes are key to Labor’s political success — bogans. The Government is framing policies that appeal specifically to bogan West Australians after secret pre-election polling found they could push seats into Labor hands, according to former WA premier Brian Burke. The courtship of the bogan vote is credited with driving the bare-knuckle boxing agenda, the creation of a new rugby league team in Perth and the imminent construction of a racetrack at Burswood. In a column in today’s paper, Mr Burke pays close attention to the politics behind the racetrack, identifying Deputy Premier Rita Saffioti as her party’s self-styled bogan whisperer. “Why would the Government be so determined to proceed with a racetrack no one wants?” Mr Burke asks. “The answer is secret pre-election polling that convinced Labor strategists that the party lacked support from what its pollster described as the ‘bogan vote’ which is thought not to be that interested in the cost of living, housing, interest rates or the environment. “Once publicly committed in the run up to the election, there was no one better to lead the Government’s charge to identify and win the ‘bogan vote’ than the Deputy Premier Rita Saffioti, with her single-minded commitment to ‘bread and circuses’.” Defined loosely as uncouth and unsophisticated people, Australian bogans have been a cultural mainstay for years and have evolved over time. The stereotype of a VB-drinking, V8-driving, AC/DC-listening bloke made way to a slightly more refined version immortalised in TV show Kath and Kim and celebrated in the ABC series Upper Middle Bogan. The mainstreaming of bogan culture, most obviously through the popularity of mullet hairstyles and sports stars celebrating with shoey champagne skolls, has seen many people self-identify as bogans. Tasmanian politician Jacqui Lambie leans into her unsophisticated persona. Social media sensation Ethan Marrell has made a career out of holding a mirror to bogan culture through his character Ozzy Man. Mr Burke believes the ALP has its eyes on a political class which can be wooed the same way Donald Trump won over people derided by Hillary Clinton as “deplorables”. Mark McGowan’s 2017 commitment to overturn Colin Barnett’s ban on mixed martial arts tournaments was seen by Labor as an early vote winner. That history, and the subsequent wild popularity of the UFC, has informed the party’s determination to attract cultural events considered by many to be low-brow. Mrs Saffioti was the driving force behind moves to host in Perth what would have been Australia’s first bare-knuckle boxing event. The Conor McGregor-controlled Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships was poised to announce its first tournament this month but a last-minute decision by the WA Combat Sports Commission to deny a permit saw the event cancelled. The event had become a political hot potato after news emerged that one of the fighters being considered for the card was Matthew Floyd, a former bikie jailed for bashing a police informant. The Government is also copping flak over the $217 million race track planned at Burswood. Local residents say they have been blindsided by the plan. And the decision to spend at least $60m on a local NRL franchise, the Perth Bears, had many observers scratching their heads given the code’s relatively small following west of the Nullarbor. Government insiders told The West Australian that the cultural agenda was being welcomed by West Australians, pointing to the popularity of October’s WWE event, which will see wrestling star and Hollywood actor John Cena come to Perth. The three-show scheduled — Friday Night Smackdown, Saturday’s Crown Jewel and Monday Night Raw — comes after last year’s WWE Elimination Chamber at Optus Stadium attracted 18,000 fans from outside of WA and generated an estimated $36.2m for the local economy. Mr Burke believes the party he led for five years from 1983 should be wary of developing a slavish devotion to polls. Politicians should use them rather than be led by them, he says. “Most politicians put store in polls; it’s the nature of the beast,” he writes. “But very few live by them and the good ones use them to measure their success in gaining support for a policy objective. “The principle is that polls are no substitute for vision and, unfortunately, in the 21st century the cart is being put before the horse as average politicians use polls not to shape and improve policy but to identify and determine it.” A State Government spokesperson said it has delivered a diverse range of creative and sporting content and infrastructure. “The State Government supports creative and sporting content because it helps strengthen our economy and create jobs while making Western Australia a vibrant and attractive place to live,” the spokesperson said. “Western Australians enjoy and participate in a range of activities, including motorsports and combat sports — as has been demonstrated by the incredible local support for events like UFC since WA Labor removed the former Liberal-National Government’s ban on mixed martial arts. “The State Government, through its sports infrastructure and funding for events, is supporting many activities across the State. This has included funding major upgrades to cricket, AFL, hockey, and soccer facilities in this State, together with funding key events like the Perth Festival, Fringe Festivals, and other major cultural events. “The State Government is also currently upgrading the Perth Concert Hall and the Perth Cultural Centre.”