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Australia’s ‘Hung’ Parliament: Wooing Of The “Gang Of Five” Begins
Aug 22nd, 2010 | no responses
Australia’s ruling Labor party, led by Julia Gillard, and the opposition Liberal party, led by Tony Abbott, have failed to get a clear majority in the Parliament, for which elections were held Saturday. Both parties would now be wooing four Independents and one Green party member for support to gather the required majority to form a government. However, the final election outcome would be known in another two weeks after the counting of around 2.35 million postal votes. (Australia has 14 million enrolled voters.)
Australia has a “historic” hung Parliament and may not know who is running the country for weeks – with neither Labor nor the Coalition capable of forming government in their own right, reports the Daily Telegraph.
“Despite a big swing against Labor in NSW and Queensland, Australia faces an unprecedented period of political instability with Tony Abbott’s Coalition leading the national primary vote but not quite enough to wrest government from Julia Gillard.”
The Australian federal election results are “staggering setback” for the ruling Labor Party that could send the country’s first female prime minister packing after only two months in office, reports Los Angeles Times. “Julia Gillard, a 48-year-old former lawyer who became the nation’s first female prime minister after seizing power in an internal Labor Party coup, said she would remain in office as part of a caretaker government during the ‘anxious days ahead’.
” ‘Obviously this is too close to call,’ she told supporters Saturday in her hometown, Melbourne. ‘We will continue to fight to form a government in this country.’
“Abbott, 52, a former Roman Catholic seminarian, said he would immediately begin negotiations with independents to form a government. Although his socially conservative views alienate many women voters, supporters say Abbott can better empathize with Australian families…
“Analysts said Australia’s major foreign policy positions, including its deployment of 1,550 troops to Afghanistan, would not be affected by any election outcome because the sides hold similar views
Australia’s three serving independents, likely to hold the balance of power in the national parliament, will meet tomorrow to decide which party to support and whether to back a tax on mining company profits.
More here…
The 2010 Australian election appears to have had the highest number of informal votes in at least the last six federal elections. Early figures from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) show about 5.65 per cent of ballots cast would not count because they were filled out incorrectly or left blank. See here…
Australia appears to be dividing into a country of US-style ”red states” and ”blue states,” with last night’s vote confirming a trend that divides the country into opposing political tribes. reports The Sydney Morning Herald. Swings towards Labor in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia went against the national trend, suggesting the southern states have confirmed themselves as ”red states”. See here…
It seems like the cyber world has captured the minds of candidates fighting elections in Australia. Elections were fought as much in the virtual world as in the real one. More here…l
