Liberal Democratic Party – Liberal Democrats lead minor party revolt

Liberal Democrats lead minor party revolt

1 August 2010

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has coordinated a preference deal among the minor parties which has the potential to break the stranglehold of the Coalition, Greens and Labor in the Senate.

Led by Liberal Democrats NSW Senate candidate Glenn Druery, the participating parties have agreed to swap preferences between each other before going to the three major parties.

As a result the sixth Senate seat in NSW may be won by the Liberal Democrats, while another minor party could win in another State.

“The voting system is heavily weighted against the minor parties. Unless they get together, the only contest is between the three majors,” said Mr Druery.

“For those who do not like the three major parties, which is a lot of people, that’s quite undemocratic. Australians do not appreciate being bullied by the big guys.

“The Senate is meant to be a house of review based on the States and proportional representation. If the Greens get the balance of power, you can forget all that. It will just be wheeling and dealing over the Greens agenda.

“Apart from the socialists, the only parties that refused to join the agreement in NSW were the Christian Democrats (Fred Nile Group), Family First and the Shooters and Fishers Party. If the strategy fails and Greens candidate Lee Rhiannon is elected, their failure to cooperate will be the key reason,” he said.