(Transcript from World News Australia Radio)
The declaration of the result in that state has been postponed as the electoral commissioner decides whether to grant an appeal by Greens senator Scott Ludlam and allow a recount.
Senator Ludlam wants a partial recount after a 14-vote difference between micro-parties, the Shooters and Fishers Party and the Australian Christians, handed a third senate seat to the PUP.
The Australian Electoral Commission denied the initial request but is now considering an appeal.
But, whatever the decision, Prime Minister Tony Abbott will almost certainly have to negotiate with the Palmer United Party to pass crucial pieces of legislation.
The Coalition will have 33 senators in the new parliament, but it needs six more votes to pass legislation.
Labor, with 26 seats, and the Greens, with nine - possibly 10, if a recount is granted and won - are likely to vote together to oppose Government plans.
And both parties oppose repealing the carbon tax, which Prime Minister Tony Abbott has at the top of his legislative priorities.
The Coalition, then, would need to seek support from among the eight senators on the crossbench, including five independent and micro-party senators.
They include two returning senators, independent Nick Xenophon of South Australia and the Democratic Labor Party's John Madigan of Victoria.
Then there are three newcomers: the Liberal Democratic Party's David Leyonhjelm in New South Wales, the Australian Motoring Enthusiasts Party's Ricky Muir in Victoria and Family First's Bob Day in South Australia.
The other newcomers are Palmer United Party senators Glenn Lazarus of Queensland, Jacqui Lambie of Tasmania and possibly Zhenya Wang from Western Australia.
Mr Palmer, yet to be confirmed in Brisbane's seat of Fairfax because of a recount, is warning no bills will pass unless the PUP is allocated the resources the Greens had in the last parliament.
Mr Palmer also says he wants to change the rules governing how the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) runs federal elections.
"You then go and vote on a seat and use a pencil, which can be rubbed out, you don't use ink. You don't have to give any identification on who you are when you vote. It's not marked off on a computer for the other booths, it's just crossed out on the line. And then we've got a situation where we've got 100 ballots that had no authorisation as being validly issued and we asked the AEC to inspect the initials of the person who authorised the ballots and they wouldn't let us do it. There's no integrity in that system."
However, Mr Palmer has said he does support repealing the carbon tax.
But the potential PUP senator from the West, Zhenya Wang, does not.
Mr Palmer will need to unite his senators to ensure they follow the party line if his party is to avoid splintering into a group of disunited independents in the upper house.
Tony Abbott has conceded there will be management issues in dealing with Clive Palmer and his senators.
But he has told 2GB he expects the Coalition will be able to get the majority it needs in the Senate once new senators take their seats next July.
"Managing the Senate has been a challenge for a lot of prime ministers over the years, and I don't think it's going to be easy to assemble a majority in the Senate," Mr Abbott said. "I'm going to have to treat every member of parliament, including every member of the Senate, with respect and courtesy. I think we will be able to form an effective government in the Senate as well as in the House of Representatives."
Independent South Australian senator Nick Xenophon says Mr Abbott's comments show the Government will wait to make some moves until July next year.
Senator Xenophon has been pushing for reforms to the Senate voting system, criticising what he calls the murky, dirty preference deals that produced bizarre outcomes in his state.
"There is a lack of transparency, in terms of preference deals. For instance, in South Australia, the Greens preferenced the climate sceptics ahead of my running mate, who actually believes in climate change and believes that something needs to be done about it in a very constructive way," he said.
"So, all sorts of bizarre preference flows all over the shop. Clive Palmer, a coalminer, preferenced the Greens ahead of my running mate in South Australia. So you go figure."
Greens senator Scott Ludlum also says he thinks the Senate voting system needs reviewing.
Senator Ludlum has asked for a partial recount in his seat in Western Australia after a 14-vote difference between two micro-parties.
The Shooters and Fishers Party and the Australian Christians directed crucial preferences away from the Greens and towards the Palmer United Party and Labor.
Senator Ludlam has told the ABC it does not make sense that there is an automatic trigger for recounts in the House of Representatives but not the Senate, where he could be out.
"I think there's a question of natural justice here. Is a Senate seat of less worth or value than a House of Reps seat, in terms of wanting to be certain about it? I haven't seen any rationale yet as to why the Electoral Commission would see fit to reduce or eliminate any uncertainties in a House count but couldn't be bothered to do it in the instance of a Senate result."
Senator Ludlam says there have been Senate vote recounts before where the margin had been bigger than 14 votes.
The Australian Electoral Commission says it has postponed making a decision indefinitely.
A suspended decision would have no effect on when parliament resumes, because the old Senate remains in place until July the 1st next year.
A recount would cost the AEC about a million dollars.
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