Senator Sam McMahon quits the CLP

The deafening silence around Senator Sam McMahon’s resignation is an all-too-familiar strategy for the CLP, which seems to have a policy of: when disaster strikes, hit the deck.

INSIDERS are split as to whether the Country Liberal Party will be able to contest the looming federal election after its sole representative in Canberra quit the party.

Senator Sam McMahon sensationally resigned from the CLP on Friday, with the party president Jamie de Brenni going to ground in the aftermath.

Senator McMahon’s bombshell decision came after she was dumped at preselection in favour of former Alice Springs deputy mayor Jacinta Price in June.

Her departure could see the CLP deregistered as a political party in the federal election, due in May, after reforms made last year.

Senator Sam McMahon has ended her 30-year affiliation with the CLP. Picture Katrina Bridgeford.

The new rules increased the number of members a party needs to be registered from 500 to 1500, unless it already has a member in the federal parliament.

Senator McMahon’s resignation now means the CLP has no representation in federal politics.

One source told the Sunday Territorian the party has more than 1500 members if interstate Liberal and National party memberships are included.

But another political insider said: “for membership of the Libs and Nats to be recognised, there has to be a formal affiliation – but one does not exist”.

“The only affiliation which physically exists is around where they will sit,” the insider said.

CLP senators sit with the Nationals while their lower house MPs group with the Liberal Party.

“The earliest (an affiliation agreement) can exist is at the CLP’s central council next month where they would move a motion formally affiliating,” the source said.

But the National Party would need to formally ratify the affiliation, which may not happen until August, after the next federal election.

The Sunday Territorian attempted to contact CLP president Jamie de Brenni for comment multiple times, but received no response.

CLP president Jamie de Brenni. Photo: EMMA MURRAY

Mr de Brenni said last week that only he had authorisation to “speak on behalf of the party”.

It’s understood Senator McMahon was yet to speak to Mr de Brenni, despite her resignation being forwarded to him on midday Friday.

Senator McMahon indicated she would now sit as an independent, ending her 30-year association with the CLP.

It is likely to be the first time the CLP have been unrepresented in federal parliament since being founded in the early 1970s.

Senator McMahon has been a thorn in the side of the Coalition Government since losing her party’s senate nomination.

She crossed the floor to vote against the Government in Senator Pauline Hanson’s anti-vaccination mandate bill.

CLP’s future at risk after losing sole federal politician

THE shock resignation of the CLP’s only federal parliamentarian won’t affect the party’s ability to run in the 2022 federal election, sources have said.

New rules implemented last year increased the number of members a party needs to be registered from 500 to 1500, unless it has a member in the Federal Parliament.

Senator McMahon’s decision overnight to quit the CLP leaves the party without any sitting parliamentarians in Canberra.

However, the NT News has been told that the party has more than 1500 members, if you include the Liberal and National party memberships interstate. That means the CLP couldn’t be deregistered.

There has long been speculation that if Senator McMahon were to leave the party, it would leave the CLP fighting the next federal election deregistered.

Senator Sam McMahon quits the CLP

SENATOR Sam McMahon has quit the Country Liberal Party.

Senator McMahon advised the party Friday she was quitting, ending a 30 year association.

It is understood Senator McMahon has not joined another party or decided whether she will continue in politics.

It is likely to be the first time the CLP have been unrepresented in federal parliament since being founded in the early 1970s.

Several sources have confirmed her decision to the NT News, including a spokesman from within her office.

It’s understood Senator McMahon was yet to speak to CLP president Jamie Di Brenni as of Saturday morning, despite Mr Di Brenni forwarded her resignation on midday Friday.

The NT News has tried to contact Mr Di Brenni and Senator McMahon.

The CLP have gone to ground since the news broke, with the NT News unable to reach senior figures within the party organisation.

Before being preselected by the CLP to contest the 2019 Federal election, Senator McMahon was a Katherine vet.

She lost a pre selection battle last year to former Alice Springs deputy mayor Jacinta Price.

Senator McMahon has been a thorn in the side of the Coalition Government since losing her party’s senate nomination. Despite sitting in the National and Coalition party rooms, she crossed the floor to vote against the Government in Senator Pauline Hanson’s anti-vaccination mandate bill.

She is expected to sit on the cross bench when parliament resumes.

NT senator could defect

CLP Senator Sam McMahon is considering defecting from the party to join the Liberal Democrats.

The NT senator, who last June lost her winnable preselection to then deputy mayor of Alice Springs, Jacinta Price, has been in talks about running for the Liberal Democrats at this year’s election.

Senator Sam McMahon is considering swapping from the Country Liberal Party to the Liberal Democrats. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

It is understood Senator McMahon met with former Queensland premier Campbell Newman, who is the Liberal Democrats’ Senate candidate in that state, along with party president John Humphreys, in Brisbane late last year with a view to “giving it a go”.

A senior government figure said despite efforts to keep Senator McMahon in the tent after her bitter preselection loss to Ms Price, there was a growing belief she would join the Liberal Democrats.

A move to the crossbench by Senator McMahon would complicate the federal government’s chances of passing any legislation in the months ahead of this year’s election.

Getting bills through the Senate is already complicated at the moment after senators Gerard Rennick, from Queensland, and Alex Antic, from South Australia, declared they wouldn’t vote for any government bills until the Morrison government agreed to legislate to override state vaccine mandates.

Last year, the Territorian senator joined the pair alongside Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and former minister Matt Canavan, crossing the floor to vote for a Bill calling for an end to vaccine mandates.

If Senator McMahon defects from the Coalition it could also complicate the government’s ability to run under its Country Liberal Party banner at the next election.

Under legislation passed in August, parties must have 1500 members to remain registered with the Australian Electoral Commission to have their names appear on the ballot paper. But the rule does not apply to parties that have a sitting member.

The CLP currently does not have enough members to meet the threshold, meaning it could need to rely on Senator McMahon staying with the party if Ms Price and its candidates in the lower house seats of Lingiari and Solomon are to appear as CLP candidates on the ballot.

A spokesman for Senator McMahon said she was uncontactable on Saturday.

The senator attended the anti-vaccine mandate rally in the Darwin CBD but did not speak about her potential party change.

But in August she said she had been approached to join other parties – including the Liberal Democrats and Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party.

“I have no plans to do anything at this point in time but you never rule anything out,” she told Sky News at the time.

Originally published as Senator Sam McMahon quits the CLP