Shooters Party strikes deal with Mark Latham’s One Nation

Mark Latham’s One Nation will not stand candidates in three critical Coalition seats in the upcoming NSW state election after striking an alliance with The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party that could be potentially extended across the State.

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The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party has struck a deal with Mark Latham’s One Nation in three critical Coalition seats with the alliance to be potentially extended across NSW.

Under a handshake agreement, Mr Latham will not stand candidates in Barwon, Murray or Orange in order to give the Shooters a clear run while statewide, each party will put the other second on their Upper House how-to-vote cards.

Shooters MP Rob Borsak said the Shooters sealed the deal with a handshake with Mr Latham last month after earlier talks with Pauline Hanson in November last year.

NSW One Nation leader Mark Latham has struck a “handshake” deal with The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party. Picture: Christian Gilles

As for which seats the Shooters will not run in, that would be determined when One Nation had finalised its candidates, he said.

discussions were likely as One Nation finalised its lower house candidates, he said.

The arrangement is set to create a headache for Labor leader Michael Daley, who has ruled out a preference deal with Once Nation, but not yet the Shooters.

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The Liberals are set to campaign on the issue in the key Labor seats of Summer Hill, Strathfield, Granville and the Blue Mountains, with Treasurer Dominic Perrottet to today launch the campaign in the marginal Liberal seat of Coogee.

Mr Perrottet, who is the Liberal’s campaign spokesman, likened the Shooters to American gun lobbyists, the National Rifle Association (NRA).

“The Opposition leader is jumping into bed with an organisation like the NRA of NSW who want to arm 10 year olds with guns,” he said.

Buoyed by its Orange by-election win, the Shooters are hoping to stand up to 23 candidates in around one quarter of all NSW lower house seats to give disenfranchised Nationals voters an alternative.

Shooters and Fishers Party MP Robert Borsak agreed to the deal with Mr Latham. Picture: Adam Ward

The Upper House MP said research showed the anti-Nationals sentiment that was fuelled by the Baird government’s decision to ban greyhound racing, and merge councils, remained.

“It started with council mergers and greyhounds, but now it’s anger at things like water — there’s talk of a second desalination plant in Sydney while towns like Walgett have run out,” Mr Borsak said.

“There is a definite feeling of unhappiness with what Sydney is getting out of poles and wires and what the bush is getting.

“After speaking with Pauline last year, we had a meeting with Mark and then shook hands about two weeks ago.”

The Upper House “2-2” arrangement ends a longstanding agreement with Fred Nile’s Christian Democratic Party, which had always taken up the second spot on the Shooter’s how-to-vote card.

However, the Shooters believe the party has become too aligned with the Liberals.

While One Nation has little chance of securing a lower house seat, votes to the party’s candidates will help Mr Latham enter the Upper House.

Pauline Hanson and Mark Latham in November announcing Mr Latham will run as leader of the NSW One Nation Party in the upcoming state election. Picture: John Feder

In the Nationals-held seat of Barwon, the mass death of fish at Menindee Lakes has triggered debate over the cause, with both the major parties accused of playing a role in the Murray-Darling River system’s mismanagement.

The Shooters believe it is ahead of Labor in the seat, with candidate Troy Butler hopeful to capture enough votes to oust his Nationals counterpart, Andrew Schier, who was preselected following the retirement of water minister Kevin Humphries.

In Orange, where the Shooters’ 2016 by-election ultimately cost then Nationals leader Troy Grant his job, focus group research shows ongoing support for its candidate, sitting MP Phil Donato.

The deal between the Shooters Party and One Nation ends a longstanding deal the Shooters had with Fred Nile's Christian Democratic Party. Picture: Bob Barker

The research, seen by The Sunday Telegraph, revealed voters viewed Mr Donato as “a fighter”, “a listener” and someone that was “approachable”.

Support was strongest among females, who viewed Mr Donato as someone who would “stand up” for a cause.

Despite vowing to reclaim the marginal seat, the Nationals have had a disastrous lead-up after pre-selecting local Yvette Quinn, only for the 21-year-old to resign amid claims she was being pressured by senior women in the party to quit.

Outspoken farmer Helen Dalton is hoping to wrest the seat of Murray for the Shooters from Austin Evans who has been preselected for the Nationals.

Mr Borsak said the biggest issues facing country voters was cost-of-living and drought.

Originally published as Shooters Party strikes deal with Mark Latham’s One Nation