Australia's political leaders are nearing the end of negotiations to form a minority government after elections produced the first hung parliament since 1940.
After more than two weeks, three ‘kingmaker’ independent MPs are in talks with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and conservative Liberal/National coalition leader Tony Abbott, saying they expect a decision by Tuesday.
‘My guess is that ... we'll make a determination probably tomorrow morning,’ Tony Windsor, one of the three, told public broadcaster ABC.
Mr Windsor, Rob Oakeshott and Queenslander Bob Katter have been wooed by Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott since the 21 August election failed to give either side a majority, sparking the worst political paralysis in decades.
Ms Gillard's Labor party currently has 74 seats, two short of a lower-house majority, while Mr Abbott is one behind on 73, making the three independents' votes crucial.
The deadlock caps an unusually dramatic period for Australian politics after Ms Gillard ousted elected prime minister Kevin Rudd in June, becoming the country's first woman leader, and called elections just three weeks later.
On Monday, clear signs of a split emerged between the three ‘kingmakers’, who have been negotiating as a bloc, raising the possibility of a 75-seat dead heat between Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott which would trigger fresh polls.
‘There's three of us with a full spread of political views and policy views,’ Mr Oakeshott told reporters in Canberra.
‘It does look like we may have to make some choices about whether we stick together to get stable government or not,’ he added.
Analysts say even a government with a tiny minority would be vulnerable to collapse, threatening the reputation for stability that has helped Australia's mining-driven economy become the ‘wonder from Down Under’.
Ms Gillard's dismissal of Mr Rudd and poor campaigning were blamed for her reverse at the election, where the environment-focused Greens party won a record share of the ballot.
