As a record 18 million Australians prepare to head to the polls on and leading up to May 3 for the 2025 Federal Election, Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) officials conducted the ballot paper draw for the Division of Page in Grafton on April 11.

Representing The Nationals, incumbent Federal Member for Page Kevin Hogan was among 11 candidates to nominate as he looks to retain the seat he has held since 2013.

Each candidate was allocated a number in a first draw before their place of order on the ballot paper was determined via a second draw in accordance with the sequence of numbers drawn previously.

Independent candidate Richard Wells, who did not attend the ballot paper draw last week, drew the top spot on the list while Labor candidate Wendy Backhous is third and The Greens candidate Luke Robinson is sixth.

While reflecting on his fourth position on the ballot paper, Mr Hogan said Australians live in a wonderful democracy and elections “are an important part of that.”

Trumpet of Patriots (TOP) candidate Donna Lee Pike and Citizens Party candidate Jennifer Baker, along with Ms Backhous, told the Clarence Valley Independent they were pleased to have drawn positions towards the upper end of the list while Mr Robinson said he hopes Australians “think quite deeply about where they put their preferences”, adding he hopes all voters number “everything on the ballot paper.”

Choosing his words carefully, the candidate for The Greens is also encouraging all Australians to refer from conducting donkey votes when they head to the polls next month.

A donkey vote is when a ballot paper is numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 etc in the same order that the names of the candidates appear. While still considered a formal vote, all of the candidates in attendance last week expressed their hopes that Australians do the right thing and place their preferences accordingly.

Candidates for the Division of Page in ballot paper order:

• Richard Wells – Independent
• Donna Lee Pike – Trumpet of Patriots
• Wendy Backhous – Labor –
• Kevin Hogan – The Nationals –
• Jennifer Baker – Citizens Party –
• Luke Robinson – The Greens –
• Brenton Williams – Libertarian –
• Andrew Grady – Family First –
• Jordan Colless – Independent –
• Peter Nottle – Pauline Hanson’s One Nation –
• Josh Pianca – Shooters, Fishers, and Farmers Party

The history of Page:

The Electoral Division of Page covers 19335 km2 and extends from the NSW-Queensland state border near Woodenbong in the north, to Tabulam and The Gulf in the west, down to Hernani and Coramba in the south, and east to Wooli, Iluka, and Evans Head along the coast.

It was named in honour of Sir Earle Page, a politician born in Grafton who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Australia for 20 days between April 7-26, 1939, and consists of four councils (Clarence Valley Council, Richmond Valley Council, Lismore City Council, and Kyogle Council), and parts of two more (Ballina Shire Council, and Coffs Harbour City Council).

Data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) in 2021 revealed the Electoral Division of Page had a population of over 168000 people with a median age of 46.

Kevin Hogan (The Nationals) has been the Federal Member for Page since 2013.

This article appeared in Clarence Valley Independent, 16 April 2025.