Posted on 11/23/2007 10:55:46 PM PST by naturalman1975
In about minutes, polling booths across the eastern side of Australia will close, and counting will begin in the 2007 Australian election. I - and anybody else - who wants to become involved - will be posting in this thread updates based on Australian TV concerning the count.
Yes, it's tough but what goes around comes around - I've been through it here in the US several times. It's never as bad as it seems election night or the first days after.
Just listening to Turnbull - I almost expected him to thank Caroline Overington. ;)
You guys went through 8 years of Clinton, I guess it’s our turn in the wilderness.
And oftentimes good things come along sooner than you'd expect: after our 1992 presidential elections the Republican Party was on the ropes but only 2 years later we came back with a win far bigger than this Labor spike - we took the US Senate, and the House of Representatives after 40 years in Dem hands.
How soon new elections can be called if there is ‘buyer’s remorse”?
I like to think that he wont. After all, the man’s against gay marriage, is fiscally conservative, and, despite his stated stance of being against the War in Iraq, is really only withdrawing our combat contingent from there, with the proviso that he’ll redeploy them in Afghanistan.
From my point of view, this election has been more about Howard’s promise to hand over to Costello, and, of course, the all-important voter fatigue, as opposed to actual ISSUES.
I believe if Rudd makes a massive jump to the left, just as many voters will make a massive jump off his ship. He’s promised centre-right policie as opposed to right-wing ones - hardly a major defeat for us conservatives.
Then again, it really depends on whether or not the Liberals can pull out another Menzies, or another Howard. Despite the fact that I agree with Costello’s VIEWS, if he’s left steering the ship, things don’t look all that bright for the Liberal Party.
Technically a new election could be called almost instantly.
But unless he tries to act illegally or unconstitutionally, Rudd is the one who will call an election. And with a majority as large as he seems to have, we wouldn’t expect an election for three years.
< Sigh >
Hey guy. Read your freep page and... you’re living proof that there’s always hope for the future.
No matter what happens on the political front, there or here, y’all down under will always have friends up here on the proper side of the world.
Time for the Coalition to sit down and have a good long think about where they go from here. Let’s see the Coalition in the states get their act together and start turning back the red tide.
>> Despite the fact that I agree with Costello’s VIEWS, if he’s left steering the ship, things don’t look all that bright for the Liberal Party. <<
Do you think that’s the real reason why Howard was reluctant to step down, or was it really a hubris and a desire to be top dog?
It’s sad to read this, but thanks for keeping us informed. P.M. Howard has been a good friend to the USA, and we appreciate it.
Technical election question : is it possible that some seats were lost due to splitting the votes between Liberal and National candidates? Or they do not run for the same seat?
They don’t run for the same seats.
They don’t normally run for the same seats, although there was at least one case tonight where they did, but our preferential voting system means they’d normally pass preferences to each other in that case, and so they wouldn’t split the vote, delivering victory to Labor.
Condolences. Heart felt sympathies. We’re liable to be going through the same thing up here soon enough.
The Prime Minister has phoned Kevin Rudd and conceded. He is currently travelling from Kiribilli House to the Wentworth Hotel to speak.
Julia Gillard - Labor, our new Deputy Prime Minister.
“I believe John Howard will be remembered by history with respect, and with some degree of affection.”
That sentence just gives me the cold shivers.
Maybe we should be magnanimous about this. Let’s send Rudd a keg of earwax for his celebration.
Thank you.
I see some recent electoral USA-AUS pattern here. Can you check and see if the pattern holds, going back?
In 1993 unpopular Keating (Labor) reelected after Clinton victory in US. Howard (Coalition) wins after 1994 “Gingrich Revolution” and Republican sweep in Congress. Rudd (Labor) wins a year after Democrats take back Congress in 2006, even with economy in generally great shape and commodities soaring in price.
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