Page 9 - ARUBA TODAY

A9
WORLD NEWS Monday 8 april 2019

Australian election on May 18 appears likely

By ROD McGUIRK would need the approval had flown to the Austra-
Associated Press of the center-left Labor lian capital Canberra for
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) Party opposition if taxpay- committee hearings start-
— May 18 appears the ers were to continue fund- ing Monday would be sent
most likely date for Austra- ing of what are described home that day.
lia's next election at which as government public infor- The Australian Electoral
the conservative govern- mation campaigns. Commission website says
ment faces an uphill battle Morrison on Sunday de- May 18 is the last possible
to win a third three-year fended his government's date for the election be-
term. spending and accused cause counting votes can
Government sources have Labor of using government take six weeks and must be
told media that Prime Min- coffers to pay for its own finalized by June 30. The
ister Scott Morrison will not advertising while it was a government would have
call an election on Sunday, caretaker administration to invest in more commis-
which had been widely an- ahead of its defeat in the sion resources to cope with
ticipated. 2013 election. a tighter deadline created
Sunday was the most likely He gave no clue on Sun- by a May 25 election.
choice if Morrison were day to the election date. But Morrison said on Sun-
to opt for the first of three "The election will be called In this Feb. 13, 2019, file photo, Australian Prime Minister Scott day that May 25 remained
dates available to him in April and the election will Morrison addresses the media at Parliament House in Canberra. an option.
— May 11, May 18 and be held in May," Morrison Associated Press Prime ministers usually keep
May 25. While many com- told reporters in his home- their choices of election
mentators had previously town Sydney. election that cost it 14 legislators. dates a tightly guarded se-
thought May 11 the most "We're not doing this with seats. The ruling coalition Prime ministers traditionally cret in an effort to put the
likely election date, May any haste and we're not has since lost another two call elections on a Sunday. opposition at a tactical
18 would give the ruling doing it with any delay," he seats in the 150-seat House The campaigns last at least disadvantage. Opposition
coalition another week to added. of Representatives and 33 days and officially start leader Bill Shorten told re-
use government money to The government has been now has only 74 lawmak- a few days after the date is porters Morrison was delay-
advertise its policies and trailing Labor in opinion ers in the chamber where announced. ing the election because
achievements. polls for most of the last parties form government. Monday is the last day that "this government wants to
Once an election is called, three years since it scraped Labor has 69 lawmakers Morrison can call a May spend tens of millions of
the coalition becomes a back into power with a and the remainder are mi- 11 election. But doing that dollars on TV advertising to
caretaker government and single-seat majority at an nor parties or independent would mean senators who pump up their own tires."q

Turkish ruling party seeks total recount of Istanbul votes

Associated Press race in Istanbul, a city of Yavuz, a deputy chairman, People's Party maintains Supreme Electoral Board
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Tur- 15 million residents that is said the party would ap- that it looks increasingly un- to assume its "historic duty"
key's ruling party said Sun- Turkey's financial and cul- peal to the country's top likely that the invalidated and avoid decisions that
day it will appeal for a full tural center, but took con- election authority for a to- ballots will swing the result would lead to suspicions of
recount of all votes cast in trol of Ankara, the capital. tal recount of votes in 38 in Istanbul in favor of the "double standards" in favor
Istanbul's mayoral election, Erdogan's party, which districts in Istanbul, not just ruling party. of Erdogan's party.
which the opposition nar- had held both cities for de- of ballots that were can- Ekrem Imamoglu, the op- Yavuz insisted Sunday that
rowly won in a major set- cades, contested the re- celed. position party candidate, the elections were marred
back for President Recep sults, claiming the elections The party made the move urged the AKP to concede. by "organized irregularities."
Erdogan. were "tainted." after the opposition can- "I understand that it is not The electoral authority is
The opposition's mayoral The ruling Justice and De- didate's lead narrowed to easy to lose (Istanbul) af- expected to rule on the
candidate urged the ruling velopment Party, or AKP, 16,380 votes after some ter ruling it for 25 years, but request for a full recount
party to accept defeat. won the right for a recount 80% of the invalidated bal- this is what democracy is in the coming days before
In the March 31 local elec- of votes that were previ- lots were reassessed in the about," Imamoglu said. "It's confirming the final results
tions, the opposition not ously deemed invalid. partial recount. not the end of the world." of the elections at the end
only prevailed in a tight But on Sunday, Ali Ihsan The opposition Republican imamoglu also asked the of the week.q