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| Greens lose Senate balance of power despite strong showing in Victoria | Greens lose Senate balance of power despite strong showing in Victoria |
| (10 days later) | |
| The Greens have lost the balance of power in the Senate, despite looking likely to pick up one extra seat in Saturday's election. | The Greens have lost the balance of power in the Senate, despite looking likely to pick up one extra seat in Saturday's election. |
| The party's vote slipped by 3.3 percentage points nationally, a drop leader Christine Milne said was caused by being associated with "all the shenanigans in the Labor party". | The party's vote slipped by 3.3 percentage points nationally, a drop leader Christine Milne said was caused by being associated with "all the shenanigans in the Labor party". |
| Milne said voters had shown they did not want the Coalition to have control of both houses of parliament, but conceded that the Greens had suffered some backlash from the public. "The Greens said we would be judged at this election by whether or not we could hold our seats in the course of a conservative tide coming in across the country – and we have," she said. | Milne said voters had shown they did not want the Coalition to have control of both houses of parliament, but conceded that the Greens had suffered some backlash from the public. "The Greens said we would be judged at this election by whether or not we could hold our seats in the course of a conservative tide coming in across the country – and we have," she said. |
| "We recognise that there are some people who are disappointed by all of the shenanigans in the Labor party and that some of that has rubbed off on the Greens. I think we did really well to hold the vote to where it is." | "We recognise that there are some people who are disappointed by all of the shenanigans in the Labor party and that some of that has rubbed off on the Greens. I think we did really well to hold the vote to where it is." |
| In the House of Representatives the party held on to its single seat, with Adam Bandt securing re-election in Melbourne despite the Liberals directing preference votes away from him. | In the House of Representatives the party held on to its single seat, with Adam Bandt securing re-election in Melbourne despite the Liberals directing preference votes away from him. |
| In the Senate, Sarah Hanson-Young and Scott Ludlam are set to retain their seats for South Australia and Western Australia, respectively. | In the Senate, Sarah Hanson-Young and Scott Ludlam are set to retain their seats for South Australia and Western Australia, respectively. |
| Scott Whish-Wilson is expected to be comfortably returned in Tasmania, while Janet Rice is expected to snare a new Senate spot in Victoria, the state Milne hailed as the party's emerging heartland. | Scott Whish-Wilson is expected to be comfortably returned in Tasmania, while Janet Rice is expected to snare a new Senate spot in Victoria, the state Milne hailed as the party's emerging heartland. |
| Together with the other six Greens senators who were not facing election, the party looks like it will have 10 senators in the new upper house. | Together with the other six Greens senators who were not facing election, the party looks like it will have 10 senators in the new upper house. |
| However, the Greens suffered a dip in their overall vote, which, at 8.4% for the House of Representatives, was significantly down on their 2010 election peak of 11.76%. | However, the Greens suffered a dip in their overall vote, which, at 8.4% for the House of Representatives, was significantly down on their 2010 election peak of 11.76%. |
| The decline is most pronounced in Tasmania, the birthplace of the Greens and a traditional stronghold, where the party has suffered an 8.7% swing away. | The decline is most pronounced in Tasmania, the birthplace of the Greens and a traditional stronghold, where the party has suffered an 8.7% swing away. |
| In Queensland the Greens' vote was down by 4%, while the decreases in Victoria and NSW were about 2%. | In Queensland the Greens' vote was down by 4%, while the decreases in Victoria and NSW were about 2%. |
| Michael Kroger, a leading Liberal party adviser, told Sky News: "The Greens have been smashed all over the country. What's happened is they've put all their resources into Melbourne to hold that seat and they, typical of the Greens, this inner-city obsession, have lost complete interest or understanding of what's happened in the rest of the country." | Michael Kroger, a leading Liberal party adviser, told Sky News: "The Greens have been smashed all over the country. What's happened is they've put all their resources into Melbourne to hold that seat and they, typical of the Greens, this inner-city obsession, have lost complete interest or understanding of what's happened in the rest of the country." |
| Bob Brown, the Greens' former leader, told the ABC that the party had performed well to retain its seats, in spite of the drop in votes. | Bob Brown, the Greens' former leader, told the ABC that the party had performed well to retain its seats, in spite of the drop in votes. |
| "People have voted for this," he said. "Yesterday was a celebration of democracy. Australians have voted for it with their eyes wide open." | "People have voted for this," he said. "Yesterday was a celebration of democracy. Australians have voted for it with their eyes wide open." |
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