The Albo Governments is Setting Out to Steal the Election! By James Reed
US electoral corruption, as well covered at this blog, is naturally, bigger and worse than what we find here in Oz, but it is still a worry mate. In late February 2025, a political storm erupted as the Coalition, led by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, accused the Albanese Labor government of orchestrating a cynical ploy to bolster its electoral chances. According to a Sky News Australia article published around that time, the Coalition claimed that Labor was fast-tracking citizenship ceremonies—specifically targeting Western Sydney, a key battleground region—ahead of a looming federal election expected by May 17, 2025. The piece paints a picture of a government desperate to cling to power, rushing through over 13,000 new citizenships in a "ceremony blitz" to ensure these freshly minted ethnic Australians could enrol to vote before the March 4 deadline, potentially tipping the scales in tightly contested seats.
The article details how the Home Affairs Department staged at least 25 pre-election ceremonies across Western Sydney councils like Blacktown, Canterbury-Bankstown, and Parramatta, areas where Labor holds sway but faces pressure. The Coalition's Immigration spokesman, Dan Tehan, charged that this was a deliberate move to "rort" the system, pointing to the presence of Labor MPs and candidates at these events, mingling with new citizens as Australian Electoral Commission officials enrolled them on the spot. Tehan's outrage was palpable as he questioned why no such ceremonies were held in safe Coalition seats like Mitchell or Berowra, suggesting a blatant partisan skew. Pauline Hanson of One Nation echoed this fury, calling it an attempt to "steal the election" by stacking the voter rolls in Labor's favour.
Labor didn't flinch. Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil dismissed the accusations as baseless, arguing that granting citizenship is a routine government function, not a political stunt. She emphasized the "joy" of the 13,650 new Australians celebrated in these ceremonies, framing it as a fulfillment of Labor's promise to clear a backlog of 350,000 citizenship applications left by the previous Coalition government—a backlog Tehan himself acknowledged had ballooned under Covid-era delays. The department's secretary, Stephanie Foster, backed this up in Senate estimates, noting that while a six-month residency guideline exists, ministers have the prerogative to call extra ceremonies, especially with an election on the horizon.
The Sky News piece doesn't shy away from its slant, amplifying the Coalition's narrative of electoral manipulation while giving Labor's defence shorter shrift. It highlights the Coalition's demand for transparency—how many new citizens enrolled, and where?—and paints Labor's actions as a desperate bid to offset sliding polls, with recent surveys showing the Coalition edging ahead 51-49 on a two-party preferred basis. Western Sydney, with its mix of multicultural communities and economic concerns, is portrayed as the linchpin, a region where Labor's cost-of-living pitch might resonate with new voters but where the Coalition hopes to claw back ground.
This account captures a moment of raw political tension, where a seemingly administrative act—welcoming new citizens—becomes a lightning rod for accusations of democratic subversion, which it is. But that is standard operating procedure for Labor across the country, and across time, seen most clearly in all the shonky business with the Voice referendum, something which never should have happened. The Labor party of today is 180 degrees different from what it was at Federation, where it stood for defending White Australians against globalist enemies. It is now the party of woke, globalism, and anti-tradition, a version of the US Democrats, but even more crass.
"The Opposition has accused the Albanese Government of "industrial-scale seat stacking" as it prepares to hold citizenship ceremonies to welcome tens of thousands of new Australians in marginal electorates ahead of the Federal Election being called.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke will personally give citizenship certificates to thousands of new Australians in key electorates in Labor's traditional heartland in Sydney's west and south-west over the coming weeks, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Liverpool Mayor Ned Nannoun accused Mr Burke of "rushing through" citizenships, pointing to a spike in approvals in his area since December, and that the minister suggested in a private conversation that new Australians "should have an opportunity to vote".
Speaking to Sky News First Edition host Peter Stefanovic on Friday morning, Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie accused Labor of "industrial-scale seat stacking".
"They're seeing great Coalition candidates like Sam Kayal (in) Werriwa standing up and fighting for local roads and all of a sudden his local community are saying, 'you know wat you've done nothing for us Labor and we want to get the country back on track and on Western Sydney' and are considering voting for Liberal candidates," she said.
"And as a response, this government has done what no other government has done - (approving) 12,500 new citizens, processed with a handshake from the minister (Mr Burke) himself, not from mayors. And the fact they're holding 6,000 in one go.
"They're not happening out in Shepparton, or in Dubbo... they're not happening in Brighton, they're all in western Sydney because the Labor Party is feeling the pinch."
Asked by Stefanovic of her thoughts, Independent Zoe Daniel said she did not see any evidence to substantiate the allegations against Mr Burke.
The Member for Goldstein in Victoria described citizenship ceremonies as "the most beautiful experience" before hitting out the at the Coalition.
"Unfortunately, this sounds like the usual Coalition dog whistling on migration," Ms Daniel said, adding she hopes the election did not "dissolve" into a migration debate.
However, fellow independent Dai Le, who holds the seat of Fowler in Sydney's south-west, said it is surprising to hear Mr Burke suddenly attending citizenship ceremonies, as she had not seen any minister attend local council events.
"It looks like fast-tracking through many new citizens, especially in south-west and western Sydney… that is known as Labor heartland," Ms Le told First Edition.
"The people will speak at the end of the day.
"They can announce anything they want but they still have not addressed the critical pains people in western and south-west Sydney are feeling at the moment which is cost of living - petrol prices, energy bills, grocery prices and rent."
Mr Burke hit back in a statement, saying people should not have to wait to be formally recognised as an Australian citizen if they had passed all security checks.
The Home Affairs Minister has already attended ceremonies this week, with a number of other events to be held from Friday and into the weekend.
According to the report in The Daily Telegraph, 6,000 citizenships will be handed out to new Australians in Sydney in a major blitz over the next three days.
A total of 12,500 will be formally recognised and have the opportunity to register to vote at the upcoming federal election which is still yet to be called.
Comments