NSW Libs take legal action to fix bungled local government nominations

The NSW Liberal Party will pursue legal action in a desperate bid to fix its bungled missed deadline for local government election nominations, claiming the state’s electoral agency failed to provide adequate notice of the cut-off date.

In a statement released on Sunday, the Liberal Party argued the NSW Electoral Commission acknowledged a “significant error” by publishing the formal notification of the cut-off five days before nominations closed, rather than seven days as prescribed by clause 288(1) of the Local Government (General) Regulation 2021.

Liberal Party president Don Harwin is under pressure over his handling of the party’s bungled local government nomination process.Credit: Rhett Wyman

The Liberal Party failed to nominate about 140 of its candidates for 16 councils by last Wednesday’s noon deadline.

But the Electoral Commission was unmoved by the party’s argument. Acting Commissioner Matthew Phillips said that after the nomination date was first published in October last year, it had been “widely publicised” in the months leading up to the cut-off date.

“Additional correspondence from the Liberal Party of Australia, New South Wales Division was received by the commissioner today. He has reviewed the information and communicated to the party his decision remains unchanged,” a statement, released on Sunday afternoon, said.

The Liberals said the electoral commission’s mistake was not merely a “technicality” but went to the “heart of ensuring a fair and transparent election”, and warned it would start legal proceedings in the Supreme Court if its request for a seven-day deadline extension was rejected.

“Should the NSW Electoral Commission fail to act, the Liberal Party of Australia NSW Division will be left with no other option but to pursue legal avenues to compel it to extend the nomination deadline,” the statement said.

“Urgent action is the only way to potentially preserve the 14 September 2024 election date and potentially avoid wasting taxpayers’ money and resources.”

In an email to party members on Sunday afternoon, Liberal president Don Harwin reiterated his commitment to legal remedy if the electoral commission did not budge: “I assure you that I, the state executive, and the secretariat staff, are fully committed to pursuing every single option, including legal action, to rectify this situation.”

After one of the worst mishaps in the NSW Liberal Party’s history, senior Liberal HQ staff have searched for remedy, asking for mercy while threatening the prospect of legal action.

The party’s first request for an extension, which raised concerns about how the electoral notices and nomination forms were issued, was rejected by the Electoral Commission on Saturday afternoon. Acting commissioner Matthew Phillips did not provide a rationale for the decision.

Speaking at a media conference announcing the retention of the New Year’s cricket Test in Sydney for another seven years, former Liberal premier and Cricket Australia chair Mike Baird said the farce was “hard to believe” and implored the party to undertake a root and branch investigation to ensure it never happened again.

“You have to get to the bottom and make sure that never happens again. That’s one side, but the other side is, I’m heartbroken because I know many candidates who have put their heart and soul into their communities, and they’re not going to be given the chance. And that’s a tragedy,” he said.

Premier Chris Minns with former premier Mike Baird at the SCG on Sunday.Credit: Edwina Pickles

“It’s also … a tragedy for the local community. Many incredible, hard-working councillors that have done first class jobs and would [continue to do so] don’t have the opportunity next four years to do that.”

The NSW Liberal Party terminated the employment of state director Richard Shields without compensation in a hastily convened extraordinary meeting of the state executive late on Thursday night. In a statement, Harwin said Shields’ failure to explain how the disaster occurred underpinned the swift decision to sack him.

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