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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Liberal candidate Jim Molan forced to wait for Senate seat after legal hurdle | Liberal candidate Jim Molan forced to wait for Senate seat after legal hurdle |
| (about 1 month later) | |
| Court hears count could throw into doubt which NSW Coalition senators have three-year terms and which have six-year terms | |
| Australian Associated Press | |
| Mon 11 Dec 2017 06.15 GMT | |
| Last modified on Mon 11 Dec 2017 06.28 GMT | |
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| A complication has arisen with a Liberal candidate, the retired major general Jim Molan, taking the New South Wales Senate seat originally vacated by the former Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash. | A complication has arisen with a Liberal candidate, the retired major general Jim Molan, taking the New South Wales Senate seat originally vacated by the former Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash. |
| The high court heard on Monday the special count confirming Molan’s election could not be immediately accepted as the count potentially threw into doubt which NSW Coalition senators had three-year terms and which had six-year terms. | The high court heard on Monday the special count confirming Molan’s election could not be immediately accepted as the count potentially threw into doubt which NSW Coalition senators had three-year terms and which had six-year terms. |
| Nash was to be replaced by Liberal candidate Hollie Hughes but Hughes was found by the court to be disqualified because of her job with the administrative appeals tribunal. | Nash was to be replaced by Liberal candidate Hollie Hughes but Hughes was found by the court to be disqualified because of her job with the administrative appeals tribunal. |
| Molan was the next candidate after Hughes on the Coalition’s 2016 NSW Senate ticket. | Molan was the next candidate after Hughes on the Coalition’s 2016 NSW Senate ticket. |
| The Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, whose tenure could be affected by the result, has been allowed to be a party to the case, which will be heard by Justice Stephen Gageler on 22 December. | The Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, whose tenure could be affected by the result, has been allowed to be a party to the case, which will be heard by Justice Stephen Gageler on 22 December. |
| The Senate agreed after the 2016 double-dissolution election that six-year terms would go to the first six senators elected in each state and three-year terms to the bottom three. | The Senate agreed after the 2016 double-dissolution election that six-year terms would go to the first six senators elected in each state and three-year terms to the bottom three. |
| In NSW, this meant Marise Payne, Arthur Sinodinos and Nash were given six-year terms and Fierravanti-Wells and John Williams got three-year terms. | In NSW, this meant Marise Payne, Arthur Sinodinos and Nash were given six-year terms and Fierravanti-Wells and John Williams got three-year terms. |
| Geoffrey Kennett SC, who was appointed by the attorney general to be a contradictor in the case, told the court the special count result following Hughes’ disqualification may alter the terms of senators Fierravanti-Wells and Williams. | Geoffrey Kennett SC, who was appointed by the attorney general to be a contradictor in the case, told the court the special count result following Hughes’ disqualification may alter the terms of senators Fierravanti-Wells and Williams. |
| However, the court was later told only Fierravanti-Wells was likely to be affected. | However, the court was later told only Fierravanti-Wells was likely to be affected. |
| Williams signalled this year he intended to retire at the next election. | Williams signalled this year he intended to retire at the next election. |
| Kennett said there was a problem with the “phraseology” at the end of the special count order in relation to the “place for which Ms Nash was returned”. | Kennett said there was a problem with the “phraseology” at the end of the special count order in relation to the “place for which Ms Nash was returned”. |
| “There would be left hanging the question of who is to fill the various places [under section 13 of the constitution],” he said. | “There would be left hanging the question of who is to fill the various places [under section 13 of the constitution],” he said. |
| Section 13 covers the concept of three-year and six-year terms in the Senate. | Section 13 covers the concept of three-year and six-year terms in the Senate. |
| The court was also told there were no eligibility issues with Molan taking the seat. | The court was also told there were no eligibility issues with Molan taking the seat. |
| Molan’s counsel, Arthur Moses QC, said there was some urgency in resolving the matter as the Senate returned on 5 February and NSW had been without one of its senators “for some time”. | Molan’s counsel, Arthur Moses QC, said there was some urgency in resolving the matter as the Senate returned on 5 February and NSW had been without one of its senators “for some time”. |
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