Clive Palmer’s Trumpet of Patriots party leader locks social media after loss

Clive Palmer’s Trumpet of Patriots party is banking on success in the Senate after a high-profile campaign came to a close.

Party leader Suellen Wrightson was, as expected, unable to snatch the seat of Hunter, which has been provisionally called for Labor incumbent Dan Repacholi.

Late this evening, Wrightson set her X account to private after five weeks of campaigning on the platform.

“To my fellow Hunter candidates thanks for a respectful & engaging debate about what we need in our community,” she wrote on X earlier today.

“One thing we can all agree on is Australia is the best country on earth & our collective future is worth fighting for.”

Though she lost her bid for the seat of Hunter, the party may still achieve success in the Senate. And it will claim to have caused disruption with its preferences.

Counting for the Senate begins tonight but the full count won’t be completed until weeks after the election, meaning there’s still time for Palmer’s party to secure some victories.

Mining magnate and businessman Palmer spared no expense on advertising his party and reportedly spent more than $5 million on TV ads alone this election.

Trumpet of Patriots also flooded some Australians with unsolicited text messages in the leadup to election day, the lack of an “opt out” or “unsubscribe” link making them almost impossible to escape.

“Blocking their number may work for a while, but they always have more numbers.”

Palmer was forced to create a new party before the federal election after losing his bid to re-register his United Australia Party in the High Court earlier this year.

“We will make Australia great with Trumpet of Patriots – a registered political party with the Australian Electoral Commission,” he said.

But Prime Minister Anthony Albanese rejected the notion that Australia needs to take inspiration from international governments in his victory speech.

“My fellow Australians, Australians have chosen the Australian Labor Party as their government, and our government will choose the Australian way because we are proud of who we are and all that we have built together in this country,” he said tonight.

“We do not need to beg or borrow or copy from anywhere else.

“We do not seek our inspiration overseas.

“We find it right here in our values and in our people.”