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Xenophon challenges Pyne in South Australia

Education Minister Christopher Pyne will be challenged at the 2016 election as Senator Nick Xenophon’s NXT party gathers steam.

The party, which was launched in December 2014, will field candidates in usually safe Liberal South Australian seats putting them in danger, Fairfax reports.

The state has been dealing with confusion about the future of a multi-billion dollar submarine building project after it was promised to SA during the 2013 election.

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“The whole idea is for the Libs to do the right thing on submarines,” Mr Xenophon told Fairfax.

“I just want them to keep their promise. If they break their promise, they will be broken in the electorate.”

He said his affiliated candidates in the Nick Xenophon Team party (NXT) would preference against the government if the state didn’t get the submarine building project.

Mr Xenophon’s popularity as a senator nearly scored enough votes to have two electoral quotas in South Australia in 2013, which under the preferential voting system would have meant two candidates on his ticket would be elected.

One of NXT’s policies states: “Defence procurement needs to be overhauled to acknowledge the economic and strategic benefits of local manufacture”.

According to a Newspoll the Liberal vote in SA is sagging while their votes are being given away to the other parties.

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