Liberal Democratic Senator David Leyonhjelm says that the Government's proposed changes to Senate voting will make it almost impossible for small parties to win a seat, based on similar reforms made to NSW upper house elections.
Senator Leyonhjelm's claim is overstated. The Senator's assertion that abolishing group voting tickets in the NSW upper house elections resulted in most people choosing to vote for only one party above the line is backed up by the data. However, experts told Fact Check that the proposed Senate voting changes could not be directly compared with NSW because voters would be instructed to number six squares, which differs from the instructions to number one square in NSW.
Fact check: What do the proposed Senate voting changes mean for above the line voting?
['New_South_Wales', 'Democratic_Party_(United_States)']