#ausvotes

In the alternative, if agreement cannot be reached between any of the smaller and larger parties, the Governor General will call upon a party (most likely the incumbent Prime Minister Ms Gillard) to form a caretaker government and then call a re-election. In the interests of the country, an unnecessary election must be avoided by all engaged in discussions at present. Still, the Governor General’s responsibilities are clear- she is legally responsible for the Executive operation of this nation. Make no mistake, the Governor General Quentin Bryce will act if the Executive day to day functionality of this country is threatened or compromised.

Senate

While the Lower House contains the machinery for government, the Senate results are as uncertain with only 70-80% of votes having been counted.

At this election 40 senators faced the electorate. While the Coalition will likely win 18 seats, and the ALP 15, the Greens are set to win an unprecedented 6 new seats and 1 Independent a seat. Adding to the Greens continuing 3 seats, this gives them a total of 9 in the Senate. The Coalition has a total of 34,and the ALP has 31. There are 2 Independent Senators.

Again, the Senate seats are not finalised as yet and a in the Lower House, results can change dramatically as the last 35-30% of votes are counted. An example of the dynamics involved here is with Victorian Senators. The last spot is heavily contested by John Madigan of the Democratic Labor Party and Steven Fielding of Family First. As a conservative Mr. Fielding’s success will prove important to the Coalition, particularly if they need the support of the minor parties in the Senate when legislation is considered.