Gina Rinehart's benefits leave Basil Zempilas gibbering
The well-worn joke about the WA Liberals is that they can all fit in a Tarago (this has run through a second electoral cycle after the party was pasted by Roger Cook last month, leaving them with seven members in the lower house). They're now led by Basil Zempilas, the former AFL caller who is the Wario to Bruce McAvaney 's Mario.
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ABC News
42 minutes ago
- ABC News
Which candidates might miss out thanks to Tasmania's Hare-Clark vote counting system
The long wait for a final result continues after Tasmania's state election 10 days ago. We know the Liberals will be the biggest group in the new Tasmanian Parliament, with at least 14 seats out of 35. Labor has 10 seats and the Greens five, while there are four independents. With vote counting set to continue using Tasmania's Hare-Clark system, here are some of the big questions that will be answered by the end of the week. Depending on how the counts go, we may be waiting until Saturday for an answer. Tasmanian Electoral Commissioner Andrew Hawkey says the distribution of preferences will start on Tuesday afternoon, once the deadline for postal votes has passed and the last batch is received. Before that, there's some final checking and all the votes from each booth are combined. They'll also start preparing for the first round of distributions by sorting the second preferences of those candidates who polled more than a quota. "Where you have something like Mr Rockliff, who has so many first preferences, all his ballot papers are thrown for count two," Mr Hawkey said. "They will sort of do the movement of those ballot papers, looking at every count two on every one of these ballot papers, and that'll be physically moved on Monday." For local government elections, the Tasmanian Eelectoral Commission (TEC) uses a data entry system that computerises the distribution of preferences. It is hoped that system will be in place by the next state election. "What that will mean is we should be able to get a result pretty much on that Tuesday afternoon," Mr Hawkey said. With around 50 per cent of the vote, the Liberals are set to end the count with four seats in Braddon, with Jacqui Lambie Network turned independent MP Miriam Beswick, who ran as a Nationals candidate this time around, losing her seat. Jeremy Rockliff has topped the poll statewide, with two and a half quotas. That will be enough to carry three of his party mates across the line with him, including former federal Liberal MP Gavin Pearce. Incumbent MPs Felix Ellis and Roger Jaensch are the two next best placed Liberals. ABC chief election analyst Casey Briggs said while Mr Rockliff's preferences were expected to flow strongly to the incumbents, Giovanna Simpson wasn't totally out of the count. "The only reason we have a small amount of caution is because his surplus is so big and because Giovanna Simpson performed quite well on preferences in last year's election," he said. According to Mr Briggs, the electorate of Bass is "one of the most complicated" in recent memory. The Liberals will hold their three seats, Labor is set to hold its two, and the Greens one. "That's six of the seats, but then the surpluses for every other party are sitting somewhere between 0.2 and 0.4 of a quota." Whichever candidates can accumulate preferences and outlast their competitors will take a Steven Bradbury-esque win. It means that while Labor pulled only 2.2 quotas — and Jess Greene and Geoff Lyons are still in a contest to become the party's second MP in the electorate — it may still be able to win a third. Compare that to Franklin, where the Liberals won around 2.7 quotas, but are destined for two seats. Mr Briggs also said Bridget Archer's strong vote may complicate things for the Liberals. The former federal MP has more than 1.5 quotas, but due to her high profile there's a chance some of her vote may "leak" to other candidates, rather than stay within the Liberal ticket. "It's possible there are people in Bass that have voted for Bridget Archer, but not other members of the Liberal Party ticket," Mr Briggs explained. "That would actually have the effect of bringing down the Liberals vote in that seat, and it could make it harder for them to stay ahead of other candidates," he said. The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party (SSF) remains the firm favourite chance of picking up its first ever seat in Lyons, according to Mr Briggs. But with the party's Carlo di Falco sitting on just over half a quota, Mr Briggs said it was not locked in. "His primary vote has fallen a little bit, as we expected, as more postal votes have been counted and out of division, pre-polls and other non-election day votes have been counted," he said. If the SFF fails, the Liberals' Stephanie Cameron may have a chance — she's around 0.2 of a quota behind. Labor's vote tanked in Franklin, with a near 5 per cent swing against the party and leader Dean Winter failing to secure a quota. The ABC has called two seats for them though, with first-term MP Meg Brown best placed to secure the second seat. But she will have to hold off high-profile candidate and Unions Tasmania boss Jess Munday, who she leads by around 1,000 votes. With the Liberals holding their two Clark seats and Marcus Vermey topping the poll for the party, it means he's set to topple either Madeleine Ogilvie or Simon Behrakis. At this stage, Mr Behrakis remains ahead of Ms Ogilvie by around 1,000 votes. "It's not a done deal just yet," Mr Briggs said. "We will need to see some of those lower-placing Liberal candidates excluded to be sure of that." This was Marcus Vermey's third campaign in the last 16 months, having unsuccessfully contested last year's state election and May's Legislative Council election — the long runway helping him get over the hump. Mr Briggs said the Hare-Clark voting system meant incumbents could be vulnerable to a popular outsider, with voters able to avoid certain candidates but still stick with their favoured party. "The Tasmanian electoral system requires candidates to build their own profiles, have good standing with the electorate, and be out there connecting with voters and actively campaigning," he said. "You can't coast along on your party's name because that makes you vulnerable to being defeated by a more popular member of your own party."
News.com.au
42 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Youth crime crackdown: CLP to ‘overhaul' NT Youth Justice Act
Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro has vowed to toughen the Youth Justice Act following the alleged stabbing of a teenage boy at the Royal Darwin Show, with the Chief Minister saying legislation will be 'introduced on urgency' this week in Parliament. At the Royal Darwin Show on Saturday evening, a knife was allegedly plunged into a 15 year-old boy during an altercation, triggering panic. The alleged victim was rushed to hospital in a serious condition. On Sunday morning, Ms Finocchiaro, who enjoyed the show's festivities the day before the stabbing, took aim at the 'apologists' who 'have come out against' her government's crime package. 'Let's be clear, our current reality is the result of years of Labor's soft, offender-first policies,' she said. ' Yesterday at the Royal Darwin Show, a 15-year-old allegedly stabbed another child in front of Territorians who were simply trying to enjoy the event. 'This is not normal. It is not acceptable. And under my Government, it will not be tolerated.' Ms Finocchiaro then doubled down on 'replacing Labor's broken system', 'This week in Parliament, we will be changing the Youth Justice Act to end Labor's failed catch-and-release scheme,' she said. 'We expect the usual offender apologists to criticise our efforts, but they should look Territorians in the eye and say that kids witnessing senseless violence at a family show is okay. 'Legislation will be introduced on urgency to overhaul the Youth Justice Act 2005 and Youth Justice Regulations 2006.' The changes follow months of youth related crime that has seen carjackings, home invasions, ram raids, edged weapons incidents, bashings and riotous behaviour. The key changes which will be tabled include: For courts to now consider a youth's full criminal history when sentencing for adult offences; Removing 'detention as a last resort'; Stronger powers for Youth Justice Officers to use spit-guards and 'reasonable force' to maintain safety and prevent escapes; Expanded powers for the Commissioner to manage emergencies, aligning with the Correctional Services Act. Further, the CLP say additional effects will materialise through the changes, including the definition of 'escape', the strengthening of victim engagement and aligning chief executive powers with the Corrections Services Act. In early July, Ms Finocchiaro announced she would expand the list of serious offences that are ineligible for youth diversion. The 13 'prescribed offences' included riot related charges, violent act causing death, recklessly endangering serious harm, negligently causing serious harm, hit-and-run, dangerous driving during pursuit, assaults on workers, police or with the intent to steal, robbery, burglary, using a stolen motor vehicle and making off without payment. The NT Parliament will meet between July 29 - July 31. The reforms respond to repeated community concerns and real cases where young offenders reoffended while on bail, putting the community at further risk. Minister for Corrections Gerard Maley said the reforms respond to repeated community concerns and real cases where young offenders reoffended while on bail, putting the community at further risk. 'Territorians have a right to safe streets and communities, victims have a right to a responsible justice system, and serious offenders have the right to remain silent,' said Mr Maley.
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Frosty on Trump': Australians eager for more independence from the US
Australians are voicing a strong desire for the country to assert more independence from the United States amid Donald Trump's turbulent presidency, with most voters saying they do not blame Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for failing to secure a meeting with the US President. The latest Resolve Political Monitor survey of more than 2300 people, conducted for this masthead, found that most Australians continue to have strongly negative views of Trump six months after he re-entered the White House. Fewer than one in five Australian voters believe Trump's election was a good outcome for Australia. When asked whether it would be a good or a bad thing for Australia to become more independent from the US on foreign policy and national security, 46 per cent of respondents said they believed it would be a good thing, compared to 22 per cent who said it would be a bad thing. When compared along political lines, 56 per cent of Labor voters said they supported Australia adopting a more independent foreign policy and just 12 per cent opposed the idea. Coalition voters were evenly split, with 34 per cent favouring more distance from its closest security partner while 35 per cent said it would be bad to become more independent of the US. Since returning to the White House, Trump has imposed a 10 per cent tariff on all Australian goods, as well as a 50 per cent tariff on steel and aluminium imports. The Trump administration has also called for Australia to dramatically increase defence spending to 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product, while launching a review into the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine pact. Since his re-election, Albanese has stressed the importance of Australian sovereignty and said his government would not commit to joining the United States in a hypothetical war with China over Taiwan.
