Sending unsolicited texts to more than five million Australians doesn’t seem to have given mining magnate Clive Palmer an edge over his political rivals in the Queensland seat he wants to win at the next federal election.
Mr Palmer is expected to run in the marginal Townsville electorate of Herbert, currently held by Labor’s Cathy O’Toole, but a Newspoll conducted by The Australianhas found his primary vote there is just eight per cent.
That compares to nine per cent for both Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and Katter’s Australian Party and seven per cent for the Greens.
Labor and the Liberal National Party both have primary votes of 32 per cent, the Newspoll found.
Mr Palmer previously held the federal seat of Fairfax between 2013 and 2016, under the banner of the Palmer United Party.
He announced plans to return to politics last year, registering a new United Australia Party.
The businessman has already sent unsolicited text messages to some 5.6 million voters, more than 3000 of whom have made complaints.
Previously, Marty Friedel told news.com.au he had never consented to receive the message, which was lobbed into his phone’s inbox at 10.03am, beginning with: “Make Australia Great.”
The text spruiked Mr Palmer’s campaign idea of fast trains for capital cities, saying: “1 hour to CBD from up to 300kms away. Vote 1 United Australia Party, Clive Palmer.”
And the troubled businessman isn’t just facing opposition to his texting.
Mr Palmer is now considering a challenge against a Queensland court after its refusal to block criminal charges against him.
The Brisbane Supreme Court this week ruled against the businessman’s bid to halt legal proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
Lawyer Chris Wilson, who represents Mr Palmer and his company Palmer Leisure Coolum, told Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday that his clients were considering appealing that decision.
ASIC alleges Mr Palmer encouraged his firm to purchase shares of another company that owned properties at his Sunshine Coast resort in 2012.
He was meant to make an offer within two months of announcing his intentions under corporations law, but didn’t.
Palmer Leisure Coolum Pty Ltd has also been charged with proposing or announcing a bid then failing to make an offer within the required time. Mr Palmer claimed an abuse of process in his bid to have the court stop the charges moving forward.
The matter was adjourned to February 22.
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