Hanson and Bernardi face a looming Senate showdown, by John Adams.

At the 2016 federal election, a combined 12 minor conservative orientated parties obtained over 566,000 votes or 12.6 per cent of the Senate vote in NSW.

This result demonstrates that a pathway exists for a non-Coalition conservative senator to be elected in NSW if this disaffected voting block can be unified.

Since the election, an open revolt against the Coalition-ALP established order has broken out across the state resulting from visionless leadership, adverse economic conditions, collapsing social cohesion and suffocating political correctness, especially in regional NSW where support for the Nationals appears to have collapsed.

As many voters now seek out alternative political representation, NSW is likely to become the nation’s first real battleground contest between Pauline Hanson and Cory Bernardi as One Nation and the Australian Conservatives enjoy surging political momentum among conservative and anti-establishment working-class voters. …

Many give Bernardi a natural policy advantage on the economy, education and on key social institutions such as marriage, and yet others give Hanson an advantage on addressing matters relating to nationalism, immigration, energy, social cohesion and political correctness. …

Middle-Eastern Christian communities, who have first-hand experience of the horrors of radical Islam, provide Hanson with an opportunity to garner support with an anti-Islam message.

East Asian Australians, predominately ethnic Chinese, who hold deeply held convictions on issues such as same-sex marriage and the safe schools program provide Bernardi with an opportunity, if they resent Hanson’s 1996 comments regarding Asians. …

The winner of this race is likely to assume the mantle of Australian leader of the Trump-Brexit western nationalistic uprising movement.

hat-tip Stephen Neil