ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact

A prominent Betoota Heights accountant has thrown his hat in the political ring this morning by announcing he’s won the Nationals preselection battle for the federal seat of Remienko.

The current Member for Remienko, the independent Clive Overell, has been our cosmopolitan desert community’s representative in the cold country for nearly a decade at, Lewis ‘Lewy’ Stevens is out to change that.

And to prove his point, he headed out a local farm to get some photos with livestock to let voters know he stands for rural Australia – and by rural Australia, he means the mining industry.

The 47-year-old Nationals hopeful spoke candidly to The Advocate about what he stands for and why he’s the best choice for Betoota come this election.

“I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Nationals man,” he said.

“Which in turn makes me a submissive rent boy for the mining industry. Betoota’s unemployment rate is tracking above the national average and the only way to solve that is by making more mining jobs,”

“Mining is one of the biggest employers in regional Australia. Without it, there’d be a lot ice being smoke around town and I wouldn’t have my nice new Landcruiser Prado Kakadu sitting in the driveway,”

“And I’m doing this for my kids, and their kids. I want them to live in a dystopian world where conflict is fuelled by chronic water and food shortages – that were caused by mining in the first place. I love my country.”

But to makes his dream for Australia’s future come true, Stevens has to start at the beginning.

“I’ve got the photos with the sheep, they’ll look great on my corflutes. I’ve got a cheque for a few hundred from Glencore to fund my election campaign. I hope Overell has plans for his upcoming unemployment!”

More to come.