Independent Nicolette Boele responds as Liberal Party set to launch court challenge to result in seat of Bradfield

Community independent Nicolette Boele says she respects the Liberal Party’s decision to launch a court challenge against its loss of the blue-ribbon set of Bradfield in May’s election. It was reported on Monday that the Liberals would launch the court challenge, asking a judge in the Court of Disputed Returns to recount some of the ballots in the seat they lost by just 26 votes. Ms Boele defeated the Liberal candidate Gisele Kapterian in a recount that wasn’t completed until a month after the May 3 election. Speaking on ABC Radio Sydney, Ms Boele said the new challenge was “the next step” in the process as the Liberal Party went to the “ultimate umpire” for a decision. “I do tend to line up with the idea that we have a very strong democracy in Australia compared with so many others because of the trust and the institutions that underpin that democracy, of which the electoral commission is at the absolute cornerstone,” she said. Ms Boele is officially the MP for Bradfield and has started working with her community and bringing on staff. She is set to be sworn in as parliament reopens and is writing her first speech that she hopes to give on Tuesday, July 28. On Monday, the Australian Financial Review first reported the Liberal Party would launch the court challenge. “After careful consideration of the two different results of the counts in Bradfield, we have taken the decision to go to the umpire,” Ms Kapterian said in a statement on Monday. “We are requesting a targeted final examination of a small number of ‘line ball’ ballots that were reserved and considered by the Australian Electoral Officer during the counts.” Ms Kapterian said she was not questioning the integrity of the electoral system and believed the additional scrutiny would boost confidence in the system. “Every vote counts,” she said. At the end of the recount conducted by the Australian Electoral Commission, Ms Boele had 50.01 per cent of the total vote, ahead of Ms Kapterian’s 49.99 per cent. The news comes just a week before parliament sits for the first time since the election, with Ms Boele, who was declared the winner on June 4, is expected to take her seat on the cross benches. Ms Boele was initially declared victorious in Bradfield but an administrative error was uncovered and dramatically cut her lead. Ms Kapterian then led by eight votes, triggering a total recount late in May. The tight count did not stop her being welcomed into the Liberal Party room and even partaking in the leadership vote that elected Sussan Ley party leader. It was the first time the Liberal Party had lost the seat on Sydney’s wealthy North Shore.