from Jeremy Buckingham

I’m currently locked in a ‘neck-and-redneck’ battle with Pauline Hanson to win the final seat for the Greens in the NSW Legislative Council. At the moment I’m in front, but Hanson is catching up on below-the-line votes.

Labor are keen to distract the public from their incredible electoral demise and so they and sections of the media are trying to blame the Greens for Hanson’s near success.

Labor machine men Luke Foley and Anthony Albanese have been peddling the idea that the Greens decision not to recommend a preference to Labor in the Upper House has somehow helped Pauline Hanson. This is absolute garbage.

Labor performed so poorly that their candidate for the final seat, Andrew Ferguson, is now behind both Family First and the Fishing Party. Labor cannot beat Hanson, only the Greens can. Ironically, it is Labor’s preferences that will likely decide whether Pauline Hanson or the Greens win the final seat in the upper house.

However, News Limited’s David Penberthy, printed Labor’s spin and then went further, falsely claiming “the Greens chose to direct preferences to the One Nation founder ahead of the ALP”. This is not true.

Penberthy has refused to correct his article. Instead he has doubled-down and showcasing his spectacular lack of understanding of the NSW electoral system on Monday he wrote:

Preferences from Green voters have exhausted or gone to minor party candidates, which at this stage of counting has in Hanson’s case put her in front of the ALP for the final Upper House spot.

Again this is simply not true. The battle between Pauline Hanson and the Greens has so far been fought entirely on primary votes. No preferences have yet been allocated in the count.

http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/55402.html