The Liberal party is facing another challenge to their election team as questions emerged about whether Canberra candidate Mina Zaki had properly renounced her Afghan citizenship.
A Labor candidate is also in hot water over anti-refugee comments posted on social media.
According to The Guardian, Ms Zaki declared she had renounced her Afghan citizenship on April 16, but the document she provided to the Australian Electoral Commission and Afghan citizenship law both suggest an additional step is required for complete renunciation.
On her eligibility checklist she identified that both her parents and grandparents were born in Afghanistan and that she held Afghan citizenship.
In 2018 the High Court ruled - in the midst of the dual citizenship crisis of the 45th Parliament - that the "reasonable steps" defence for renouncing foreign citizenship was insufficient.
Mina Zaki Source: Facebook
This is the first election where all candidates are required by the AEC to fill out an eligibility checklist declaring whether they have any issues, such as bankruptcy or dual citizenship, that could put them in breach of section 44 of the constitution.
While the Canberra seat is notionally held by Labor on a 12.9 per cent margin, uncertainty about another candidate's eligibility will rock the Liberals who have already lost nine candidates since the election was called.
Meanwhile, Labor is under pressure to disendorse their candidate for the Western Australia seat of Durack over anti-asylum seeker posts on social media.
The West Australian reported that Sharyn Morrow made her comments on Facebook in 2013 in response to a riot at the Nauru detention centre.
Sharyn Morrow, Labor’s candidate for Durack. Source: Labor Party
"These trouble makers should be sent back to where they came from, they do not deserve our charity. When will we see a government that understands charity begins at home."
Questioned by reporters about Ms Morrow's comments shadow treasurer Chris Bowen said it was the first he'd heard of her remarks.
"We have processes to look at these things. I would need to review that," he said.
Environment minister Melissa Price holds the seat of Durack on a margin of 11.1 per cent.
Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie said that all parties would be examining their processes after the election, including candidate endorsement.
"All parties have been struggling with candidates that have not quite met the mark for both the parties they choose to represent but also the broader Australian public," she told the ABC.
