Transparency, whistleblowing key themes in target seats

Eight out of 10 voters in the affluent eastern Sydney seat of Wentworth, held by independent MP Allegra Spender, say whistleblowers made Australia a better place.

Nine in 10 said they supported stronger legal protections while four per cent opposed them, according to polling commissioned by the Whistleblower Justice Fund.

There was also overwhelming support for an authority to help people come forward and respondents said greater protections increased their trust in government.

Almost two-thirds said they were much more likely or more likely to vote for a candidate who supported whistleblower protections compared to four per cent who said they'd be less inclined.

Supporters were much more likely to vote for Ms Spender, the Greens or Labor compared to the Liberals, although more than 40 per cent of Liberal supporters said they'd more likely cast their ballot if the candidate backed protections.

The polling reflected what she heard in her community, Ms Spender said.

"People who tell the truth should be protected, not punished but right now there are massive gaps in our laws," she told AAP.

"Wentworth local David McBride has already gone to jail and Richard Boyle is still being prosecuted for exposing aggressive tax collection practices at the ATO.

"I strongly support creating a whistleblower protection authority ... this is the kind of reform that anyone wanting to represent Wentworth should support."

Support was also high in the regional Victorian seat of Wannon where former radio host turned independent candidate Alex Dyson is challenging Liberal frontbencher Dan Tehan's less than four per cent margin.

Seven out of 10 people in this area said whistleblowers made Australia a better place compared to 7.5 per cent who disagreed.

Support was higher for people who supported Mr Dyson (85 per cent) and the lowest in the Liberal camp, where about half said they wanted stronger protections.

It's a similar story for Caz Heise, who is challenging the Nationals' slim margin in the NSW coastal seat of Cowper, where seven in 10 people said they're more likely to support a candidate who backs stronger whistleblower protections.

Ms Heise has committed to stronger safety measures, saying it was a key priority as people in her community wanted corruption stamped out.

Campaigner for the Whistleblower Justice Fund Tosca Lloyd said it was clear voters wanted tougher safeguards.

"Australia's whistleblower laws are broken - and voters know it. Both the coalition and Labor have delayed action once in power, perpetuating a culture of secrecy and spending millions of dollars prosecuting whistleblowers," she said.

"(Voters in polled seats) join a growing chorus of people across the country and across the political spectrum who think our government should be protecting those who expose corruption, not silencing them."

The polls were conducted by uComms and had a weighted sample size of between 725 to 800 people in each electorate with about a 3.35 per cent margin of error.

Australian Associated Press