Nick Xenophon’s SA Best party has unleashed a new ad that explodes conventional notions of political promotion, instead opting for the Tim & Eric school of campaign messaging. Actually, for the real South Aussies here: it feels like something Cunningham’s Warehouse used to pump out.
The two-minute spot includes green screen trickery, an auto-tuned rap, bopping Boomers, skateboards, hay bales, and a parasol-waving dance sequence. It’s a lot, and we recommend you get around it right now:
.@Nick_Xenophon‘s first election campaign ad has raised eyebrows – is it a hit or a cringe-worthy miss? What do you think? All your election coverage is in 7 News at 6pm. #saparli #SAVotes #7News pic.twitter.com/3yX0c31Var
— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) February 20, 2018
The politician, who built his name on a state and federal level for his staunch opposition to pokies, told The Advertiser the party made a conscious decision not to tear down Labor Premier Jay Weatherill or Liberal Opposition Leader Steven Marshall.
“We didn’t bag anyone,” Xenophon said. “It’s a pretty unusual political ad because we didn’t bag our opponents.”
While Xenophon may have bagged himself with the instrumentals in the verse (the chorus is pretty catchy, goddamnit), SA Best’s other efforts appear to have been pretty successful. In a series of polls conducted since the middle of last year to now, SA Best has enjoyed anywhere from 18% to 32% of the vote – more than enough to seriously worry Labor and the Liberals.
As a young person who left Adelaide with the hopes of finding a more favourable job market, this ad doesn’t exactly have me rushing back home. Still, there is something endearing about its wholehearted hokeyness, and seeing the Central Markets in any capacity is always bloody delightful.
The election will be held on Saturday, March 17.
