Australian Election: Who to vote for? News.com.au answers...

[Andrew]

The only person enjoying a sausage sizzle tonight will be Bob Brown

Double entendre?

SkyNews' coverage is currently projecting Labor to be ahead by 11 seats, with a loss of one seat to the Coalition.

[benji]

Double entendre?

Well, that's boring.

SkyNews' coverage is currently projecting Labor to be ahead by 11 seats, with a loss of one seat to the Coalition.

Well, that's boring.

[Andrew]

No, wait! It appears that seat Labor has lost has gone to one of the other parties. Gripping stuff.

[J@3]

Out of everything I read on news.com.au that is the most sensible reason to elect anyone they talked about. I still can't figure out why you guys loved him and suddenly bailed even the WIki explanation makes no sense.

I don't know either to be honest, I think it had something to do with an emissions trading scheme or some crap. Then his own party just decided to get rid of him, the whole process began and ended within a few days it seems.

[Andrew]

SkyNews now reporting 69-64 in favour of Labor.

[The X]

Looking like we could have a hung parliament.

[Andrew]

Seems likely. SkyNews now reporting 73-69 in favour of Labor, ABC says 70-69 in favour of the Coalition.

[koberulz]

I don't think that's anywhere near as absurd.

A navy can hold a boat for extended periods of time, during which a government could verify asylum claims. I think it's stupid, but it's not completely absurd.

The way I understand it, he wants to make the decision over the phone as to which boats will be given a change to have their claims verified, and which will be simply turned away (and promptly sunk).

[Andrew]

80,000 uncounted votes to reveal winner

And in the meantime, the first hung parliament in 60 years.

[benji]

So that means Gillard isn't allowed to be PM amrite?

Interesting that you guys, those people in the wasteland, and your mother country all have hung parliaments currently.

[koberulz]

So that means Gillard isn't allowed to be PM amrite?

Gillard is PM until either she or Abbott can cobble together enough support from other parties to have a majority.

[J@3]

From everything I've been reading it looks like Abbott has a better shot of gathering the people needed to take office as a minority government (facts probably wrong here). Something like 3 of the independents have national party ties, so even though Labor will get the Greens guy and probably another one, there's a good chance the Liberals will still get 1 more. Though I read something about the possibility of a vote of no confidence, leading to another election or the Governor General stepping in or some shit. We need to get rid of these stupid parties that serve no purpose but the dilute the voting pool, like the Sex Party and Family First.

[Andrew]

I say send everyone back to the polling booth, the sooner the better. As I understand it, if a minority government can be formed then that's what we'll be doing in twelve months time anyway.

[Dan's Brain]

This website has an interesting take on the whole situation.

http://doesaustraliahaveagovernmentyet.com/

Buying a domain name for a very quick joke = totally worth it.

[J@3]

Looks like we will soon.

TONY Abbott has come out swinging against Julia Gillard over the Prime Minister's agreement to allow three Independents full access to confidential Treasury advice.

Mr Katter has said that "intransigence" makes it look as though the Coalition has something to hide. "It makes it much more difficult for us to give him the gong to become prime minister," he said on ABC TV.

Mr Windsor has said it is a bad start to the negotiations. "(It's like) starting a race with a bucket of concrete around one foot," he has said on Fairfax radio.

[Dan's Brain]

katter is a freaking maniac. It's absurd the amount of power these 3 guys are wielding.

[Andrew]

This website has an interesting take on the whole situation.

http://doesaustraliahaveagovernmentyet.com/

Buying a domain name for a very quick joke = totally worth it.

Awesome.

[J@3]

katter is a freaking maniac. It's absurd the amount of power these 3 guys are wielding.

I'm loving it. We have the most retarded "democratic" voting system, it's great that these idiots who we didn't even elect to run for prime minister are being forced to pander to some random independents that no one would've known existed under different circumstances.

[Dan's Brain]

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand we're done.

17 days later, and the Independents have made their decisions.

Katter - Coalition
Windsor - Labor
Oakeshott - Labor.

Labor gets the majority: 76-74.

I'm just sitting through the news conference on Sky News: painful.

[J@3]

Labor wins, stoked. The news conference was horrific. I want to punch Oakeshott, he talked for like 15 minutes and didn't say shit until the last 5 seconds. What a prick.

[Andrew]

I want to punch Oakeshott, he talked for like 15 minutes and didn't say shit until the last 5 seconds.

I guess you could say he pulled a LeBron.

I expect Tony Abbott to be completely ungracious in defeat.

[Laxation]

I'm just sitting through the news conference on Sky News: painful.

Just because the last minority government was in the 1940's, it doesn't mean remote controls were un-invented...

Anyone else sick of politics? I hope theres no more elections for the next 4 years, I've had it

[Andrew]

I'm in no rush to see any more campaign ads at every turn. Hopefully we're not back at the polls in twelve months time.