Gillard tries to form stable government

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has got the jump on Opposition Leader Tony Abbott,
making first contact with independent MPs and the Greens about forming a stable
minority government.
Despite suffering a massive backlash at the ballot box, Ms Gillard on Sunday claimed
a mandate to govern because Labor had won the popular vote, even though it doesn't
have the numbers to deliver government.
Australia remained in political limbo after the public on Saturday denied both Labor
and the coalition the 76 seats to form government in their own right.
Political observers are tipping it could take a week or more for the result to
crystalise, with thousands of crucial postal votes yet to be counted.
Late Sunday, the Australian Electoral Commission was calling 70 seats for Labor, the
same for the coalition, three to independents and one to the Greens.
Six seats - Boothby, Brisbane, Corangamite, Denison, Hasluck and Lindsay - remain in
doubt.
On a two party-preferred basis, Labor had 50.67 per cent of the vote and the
coalition 49.33 per cent.
Early signs are that a handful of independents who will determine who governs are
more likely to support Labor, primarily because it is expected to be better able to
work with the Australian Greens, who are tipped to hold the balance of power in the
Senate.
But Mr Abbott maintained a "chronically divided and dysfunctional" Labor had lost
its authority after taking a savage hammering from the electorate.
"It is historically unprecedented for a first-term government to receive the kind of
rebuff that the Rudd-Gillard government received yesterday," he told reporters in
Sydney.
"I think that the public expect a change of government as a result of yesterday's
result."
While Mr Abbott has done what was unthinkable just nine months ago - taken the
coalition to the precipice of government - the strain of the campaign appeared to be
showing when he fronted the media on Sunday.
Journalists were left stunned when he abruptly left a press conference after only
three minutes.
As Australia faces its first hung parliament since 1940, a decision on the make-up
of the next government rests in the hands of up to six individuals not aligned with
either Labor or the coalition.
The Australian Greens' Adam Bandt is set to join re-elected independents Rob
Oakeshott, Tony Windsor and Bob Katter in the House of Representatives.
Independent Andrew Wilkie in Tasmania is also in the race to snatch the seat of
Denison from Labor.
Their ranks may be further boosted by WA Nationals MP Tony Crook, who has signalled
he will act independently of the coalition.
Ms Gillard was first out of the starting blocks on Sunday to begin what are likely
to be long and complex negotiations to form a workable government.
"It's my intention to negotiate in good faith an effective agreement to form
government," she told reporters in Melbourne.
She held talks either in person or by telephone with everyone except Mr Crook.
Her spokesman told AAP she intended to speak to him in coming days.
Despite the political uncertainty, Ms Gillard assured financial markets that
government stability continued.
"My words today are to say to the Australian people, to markets, we are a robust
democracy, with clear conventions and rules. Stability in government continues in
this period," she said.
The first indication of how the financial markets have reacted to the historic
situation will become apparent when the Australian dollar starts mainstream trade
early on Monday.
For the first time since 1940, Australia is facing the prospect of a hung parliament
after neither Labor nor the coalition had the 76 seats to form government nearly 24
hours after the polls closed on Saturday.
Mr Oakeshott, Mr Windsor and Mr Katter are planning to travel to Canberra to meet on
Monday to discuss the possible permutations of the election, as well as any role
they may play.
The independents have stressed a priority will be stable government.
Mr Windsor noted that a hung parliament didn't guarantee three years' of government.
"You need to have a degree of stability of whoever is put in government," he told
ABC TV.
Mr Oakeshott hopes the potentially unprecedented outcome could herald a new
democratic era.
"This could be a really enlightened moment if people of all political brands are
willing to focus on their country instead of their political party," he said.
The independents have signalled some of the key policies where they would like to
see change include broadband and climate change.
Mr Bandt, whose victory in Melbourne makes him the Greens first lower house MP
elected at a general election, reiterated his position that his strong preference
was to work with a Labor government.
"My preference for delivering stable and effective and progressive government would
be to work with the Gillard government," he told reporters.



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