What we learned – Sunday 11 May
That’s all for the blog today. Here’s a wrap, in case you missed it:
Jacinta Nampijinpa Price formally nominated for Liberal deputy leader, days after leaving the Nationals party room.
Former industry and science minister Ed Husic said speaking up on Gaza was a “factor” in his being dumped from the prime minister’s cabinet.
Husic also labelled deputy prime minister Richard Marles a “factional assassin” who reshaped the ministry.
Nationals leader David Littleproud backed his record to hold on to the party’s top job as he welcomes the challenge from Queensland senator Matt Canavan as “healthy for our democracy”.
There are still a hand full of seats too close to call, one week on from the federal election. Notably, Liberal candidate for Bullwinkel Matt Moran officially conceded defeat to Labor’s Trish Cook. And in the seat of Kooyong in Victoria, independent Monique Ryan is in the lead, with a margin of 693 votes on Liberal Amelia Hamer.
The cricket world is mourning the death Australian great Bob Cowper.
Three men wielding machetes allegedly forced entry into a home in Sydney’s east in what police believe was a targeted incident.
And a teenager was caught with a knife and a fake gun while trying to enter an AFL match without a ticket.
Thanks for joining us. Have a lovely Mother’s Day, and see you back on the blog next week.
Updated
Senate results shaping up as a ‘leftwing landslide’
Looking to how the Senate is shaping up, analyst Ben Rau is calling it a “leftwing landslide”.
Whether the left or right can win a four out of six seats in each state – creating a “4-2 split” – is a deciding factor in the Senate, Rau explains in his recent update. He says generally almost all elections are a 3-3 split.
But “right now there is a possibility of a left-right split in five states, with the left leading in four of those states”.
The left could possibly win four seats out of every state, except Queensland where a 4-2 right split has become a 3-3 split, and a 2-0 split in the ACT, Rau explains.
This would lead to a very clear Labor-Greens majority, with some seats to spare.
Updated
