As we emerge bleary-eyed from a chaotic weekend of Austrian politics, not really any closer to knowing who will govern the country than we did last Friday, many may be wondering what good even came out of last Saturday’s election.
An election that promised everything has provided very little to cheer about. A swing to Labor has seen neither major party yet gain enough votes to secure a majority in the Lower House, while thanks to the rules of a double dissolution election; a rare full-Senate election has left the Upper House looking more like a war zone.
In anticipation of what might possibly be a hung parliament situation – and regardless, undoubtedly a hugely frustrating era of Australian politics – video editor from ABC’s Insiders program Huw Parkinson has created an incredible mashup of Australian politics and Lord Of The Rings.
The Battle For Middle Ground may be his best work yet – employing some of Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten’s least convincing speeches and foreshadowing the fact that we’ll likely hear many more.
Nick Xenephon even makes a crowning appearance (quite literally), while Richard Di Natale makes a cameo as Legolas.
Watch: The Battle For Middle Ground