Latest news with #JeffPope
The Drive
19-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Drive
Nissan Thought Way More People Wanted an SUV That Doesn't Look Tough
The latest car news, reviews, and features. The Nissan Murano is redesigned for 2025, and y'know, it's pretty good. The issue is, it competes with lots of midsize crossovers, almost all with an off-road bent. Market research will show you that's what's popular these days, but Nissan went another direction with the Murano and made it a snazzy urban runabout. It's a bold move, and one that seems to be working out in some respects, but Nissan made so many that it's reportedly offering dealers $1,000 to $2,000 apiece to take on new inventory. Word of the increasing Murano overflow comes from an Automotive News report. It cites Cox Automotive data showing a five-month supply of Muranos at dealers across the United States, a 15% increase over the 133-day supply measured in March. This reportedly has Nissan dialing back the total number of Muranos it expects to build this year, cutting 21% from its May projections down to 47,410. With Nissan betting more on the refined and elegant ethos of the current-gen car, it was difficult to know how it would fare against the adventure-vibe competition. Nissan Vice President of Model Line Marketing Operations Jeff Pope explained to Automotive News, 'Trying to understand what kind of segment share you can get … and the volume that equates to is a little bit more difficult than looking at a traditional segment like Pathfinder. So we got aggressive [and] front-loaded a lot of [Murano] production.' Ah, yes, the Pathfinder: Nissan's other midsize crossover that's doing quite well, actually. Its lane is a little bit clearer, as it targets core buyers in the segment who like the idea of going off-road, whether or not they ever do. We've seen that trend spread to essentially every category—heck, even supercars. But not the Murano. Those HVAC controls are still some of the strangest I've encountered on a test car. They're touch-capacitive, so you press on the wood-grain-esque trim to toggle them. Very urban indeed. Caleb Jacobs This city-centered Murano redesign may have helped it stand out so far in 2025. Deliveries rose to 8,702 in Q1, an 84% increase over the same period last year. That means it's digging itself out of the massive hole left by the old Murano, which outsold only the Mazda CX-70 and Toyota Crown Signia in its category in 2024, because those models only first hit the market in 2024. Leaving the Murano alone for so long is why some Nissan dealers believe they're in this position. It went a decade without any serious updates before this new model dropped late last year. One retailer who spoke with Automotive News and asked to remain anonymous said, 'Nissan let the model age so much that loyal Murano customers left the brand.' If they ever get those customers back in the showroom, they might like what they find. I enjoyed the Murano for its decisive character when I reviewed it late last year, and with styling like that, it certainly stands out. We'll just have to see if it's enough to pluck people away from the four-wheeling five-seaters that everybody is clamoring for. Got a tip or question for the author? Contact them directly: caleb@
Epoch Times
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Australian Federal Police Launch Probes Into 10 Election-Linked Offences
It wasn't just politicians clocking long hours during the federal election campaign. Over 600 Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers worked tirelessly between March 28 and May 3 to protect all candidates contesting the 2025 election. According to data from the AFP, this year's election saw 51 crime reports assessed by the Electoral Investigations Coordination Cell (EICC), resulting in 10 formal AFP investigations. So far, four individuals have been charged with state-based election offences, while 28 matters have been finalised. Fifteen criminal complaints were either initiated by other agencies or referred for investigation, with six investigations still active and two cases under ongoing evaluation. 'The AFP is marking the successful conclusion of Operation Australis25, delivering protective security measures for all Parliamentarians and candidates in the 2025 Federal Election, including the mitigation of threats and incident response,' the force said in a statement on 19 May. Complaints And Deployments Managed Nationwide AFP Commander Mark McIntyre said the force dedicated over 43,000 hours to election operations, including protecting senior officeholders, addressing active and potential threats, and probing election-related criminal complaints. 'In partnership with state and territory police, our teams responded to incidents to ensure candidates and Parliamentarians could campaign without fear of violence or intimidation,' he said. Related Stories 5/13/2025 5/7/2025 Officers from the Specialist Protective Command were stationed nationwide to implement intelligence-driven security tailored to local threat assessments. In a separate case, a Ballarat man was charged in April for allegedly sending threatening emails to a federal MP's office on 27 March, just ahead of the campaign period. Spate of Assaults, Vandalism Peaks In Final Week Australian Electoral Commissioner Jeff Pope said the final weeks of campaigning saw a rise in troubling incidents. 'Very vast majority of polling centres and party workers and candidates absolutely doing the right thing,' he told ABC Radio, but noted that certain hotspots in inner Melbourne and Sydney's Wentworth electorate required police involvement. A volunteer for billionaire Clive Palmer's Trumpet of Patriots party was assaulted in Pakenham while distributing how-to-vote cards. Footage posted by online commentator Rukshan Fernando and later shared by Senator Ralph Babet showed a man in a bike helmet appearing to knee and punch the volunteer. In NSW's Hunter region, One Nation campaign signage was destroyed, prompting party leader, Senator Pauline Hanson, to share video evidence online. Meanwhile, Greens candidates also reported vandalism. Posters of Senator Mehreen Faruqi and Grayndler candidate Hannah Thomas were defaced with swastikas in Sydney suburbs Erskineville and Stanmore. 'Incredibly disappointed by some of that behaviour, and we'll continue to call the police and we'll continue to pull whatever levers we possibly can to try and make this the best voting experience for the voter,' Pope said.
Epoch Times
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Assaults, Swastikas: AEC Chief Says Ugly Incidents Concentrated in a Few Key Election Seats
The final stretch of the federal election campaign has been marred by a string of ugly incidents forcing Australian Electoral Commissioner (AEC) Jeff Pope to speak publicly on the matter. 'Very vast majority of polling centres and party workers and candidates absolutely doing the right thing,' he told ABC Radio. He said these events are concentrated in particular seats and voting centres, where organisers have had 'to call police.' Pope revealed inner city Melbourne and Sydney's easternmost electorate of Wentworth were hotspots. Recently footage emerged showing a volunteer for Clive Palmer's Trumpet of Patriots party being assaulted in the south-eastern suburb of Pakenham. Footage posted by online commentator Rukshan Fernando and later shared by Senator Ralph Babet showed a man wearing a bicycle helmet approaching the volunteer and appearing to knee and punch him while he was handing out how-to-vote cards. This followed an earlier incident in the Hunter region, NSW, where campaign signs for One Nation were cut and torn apart. Senator Pauline Hanson shared footage of the incident online. In parallel, the Greens have also reported a wave of attacks on their election material. Posters of Senator Mehreen Faruqi and Grayndler candidate Hannah Thomas were defaced with swastikas in the inner-west Sydney suburbs of Erskineville and Stanmore. 'Incredibly disappointed by some of that behaviour, and we'll continue to call the police and we'll continue to pull whatever levers we possibly can to try and make this the best voting experience for the voter,' Pope said. Election Integrity Under Close Watch Pope also addressed concerns around misinformation and artificial intelligence ahead of the poll. While there were no alarming developments, he acknowledged some activity. 'There's certainly been some chatter around bots being used to spread misinformation—bots have been around longer than artificial intelligence,' he added. Pope also spoke about foreign delegations visiting Australia to observe its election practices and learn. 'We actually have a number of people from Pacific islands here … we've got about 20 countries represented from the Pacific region,' he said. 'They are coming here because Australia's elections are one of the best in the world, and we're very, very proud to show them how our elections [are] delivered.' Over 7 Million Have Cast Their Ballot Early voting numbers have hit record highs, with 7.4 million Australians having already cast their votes. Of these, 5.6 million have voted at early polling centres, 1.5 million postal votes have been returned, and over 42,000 overseas ballots received. 'We've serviced about 830,000 people just yesterday,' Pope said. He warned citizens to expect queues in the final two days. 'The headline is, you know, there's nearly 10 million people to still vote today and tomorrow.' Compared to the 2022 election, early voting is up by 22 percent as well. The sharpest increase has been recorded in Western Australia, which Pope linked to long queues experienced during the March state election. 'It's up in pretty much every capital city, particularly, but not so in the Northern Territory, which is interesting,' he noted. When asked why people are choosing to vote early, Pope said it was the eligibility process that was taking up time, as well as promotion for early voting. The AEC has made some adjustments to meet the growing demand but staffing, remains tight. 'We have had a modest increase to our early voting centres for this election. I think we're up around about 580, which is only about 40 more than what it was in 2022,' Pope said.
The Age
02-05-2025
- Politics
- The Age
‘All polling booths will get a visit': NSW Police push for calm on election day
NSW Police will visit polling booths across the state on Saturday in a bid to ensure tensions do not boil over after threatening and aggressive behaviour at early voting centres prompted the electoral commission to warn that bad behaviour would not be tolerated. The confirmation of police patrols at polling booths follows a bombardment of complaints about poor behaviour from campaign volunteers, especially in marginal seats where stakes are highest. In one example in Bennelong, the northern Sydney electorate that is one of the most marginal seats in the country, a man was last week charged with intimidation after he allegedly kicked corflutes and became aggressive towards three volunteers working at the Macquarie Park booth. Campaigners across the political divide have reported aggression at voting locations as a record number of Australians cast their ballot early this year, with more than 5 million people having voted as of close of business Thursday. A spokesperson for NSW Police said: 'All polling booths across NSW will get a visit from police at some stage tomorrow to ensure there are no breaches of the peace.' The spokesperson said a police presence at polling centres occurred during federal, state and local government elections, though long-term political observers who have worked on many campaigns said they could not recall seeing police at a polling booth. Acting Australian electoral commissioner Jeff Pope said on Friday that there had been 'isolated incidents' of bad behaviour at voting booths during the pre-polling period. 'We're all seeing isolated incidents, some concentrated in particular seats, some concentrated … [at] particular voting centres, where we have to call police, and we are incredibly disappointed by some of that behaviour, and we will continue to call the police,' Pope told Radio National Breakfast.
Sydney Morning Herald
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘All polling booths will get a visit': NSW Police push for calm on election day
NSW Police will visit polling booths across the state on Saturday in a bid to ensure tensions do not boil over after threatening and aggressive behaviour at early voting centres prompted the electoral commission to warn that bad behaviour would not be tolerated. The confirmation of police patrols at polling booths follows a bombardment of complaints about poor behaviour from campaign volunteers, especially in marginal seats where stakes are highest. In one example in Bennelong, the northern Sydney electorate that is one of the most marginal seats in the country, a man was last week charged with intimidation after he allegedly kicked corflutes and became aggressive towards three volunteers working at the Macquarie Park booth. Campaigners across the political divide have reported aggression at voting locations as a record number of Australians cast their ballot early this year, with more than 5 million people having voted as of close of business Thursday. A spokesperson for NSW Police said: 'All polling booths across NSW will get a visit from police at some stage tomorrow to ensure there are no breaches of the peace.' The spokesperson said a police presence at polling centres occurred during federal, state and local government elections, though long-term political observers who have worked on many campaigns said they could not recall seeing police at a polling booth. Acting Australian electoral commissioner Jeff Pope said on Friday that there had been 'isolated incidents' of bad behaviour at voting booths during the pre-polling period. 'We're all seeing isolated incidents, some concentrated in particular seats, some concentrated … [at] particular voting centres, where we have to call police, and we are incredibly disappointed by some of that behaviour, and we will continue to call the police,' Pope told Radio National Breakfast.
