Western Australia may go back to polls for Senate by-election

High Court of Australia Justice Kenneth Hayne ruled on Tuesday that the court was unable to declare who was duly elected as West Australia's last two senators in last September's federal election, meaning people in the state may have to go back to the polls. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) petitioned the High Court, sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns, for the election to be declared void, after it lost 1,375 votes during a recount after the September 2013 election. The initial count declared the Liberals and Labor winners of the first four of six seats. The final two seats went to Zhenya Dio Wang of the Palmer United Party and Labor's Senator Louise Pratt. But the recount narrowly gave the final two seats to the Australian Sports Party's Wayne Dropulich and the Greens' Senator Scott Ludlam. "All parties rightly accepted that, if the court declares that Mr. Dropulich and Senator Ludlam were not duly elected, and cannot declare who was duly elected, the only relief appropriate is for the election to be declared void," the judge said. He found it was also not possible to declare just some of the seats void and not all of them. He will hear further argument on Thursday before making a decision. What's most likely to happen is a fresh West Australia Senate election which could be held as early as March 29. ABC election analyst Antony Green said a fresh election "looked certain." The court decision has serious implications for the government' s legislative agenda, most of which is reliant on the new Senate due to come in on July 1. The Abbott government has the most to lose from fresh elections. Both its third senator, Linda Reynolds, and the conservative independent Wayne Dropulich, from the Australian Sports Party, are considered vulnerable. When the new Senate sits, the government needs six cross bench votes to repeal the mining tax and the carbon tax, restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission and pass anything else Labor and the Greens oppose. Presently, there are eight crossbenchers but the loss of possibly Dropulich and Reynolds would bring great trouble to the government.