A pro-Israeli YouTuber has registered a ‘Free Palestine’ party while opposing Palestinian liberation, exposing how little Australian electoral law does to police misleading political branding.

A ‘Free Palestine’ party is registered to contest the Victorian state election in November. The conflict in the Middle East is notoriously complex. But what could be simpler than a single-issue political cause, with such a direct slogan as ‘Free Palestine’?

But here’s the catch. The party was founded by an Israeli-Australian and pro-Israeli YouTuber, Avraham “Avi” Yemini, who wants Palestine to stay under Israeli control. He says he hopes to dupe left-wing voters.

A movement that sincerely wants Palestinian liberation was affronted by Yemini’s provocation. It tried to register itself as the ‘Free Palestine Party’, but the Victorian Electoral Commission had to knock it back, because Yemini bagged the name first and the names are essentially the same.

Aren’t there laws to regulate party names? How can something as serious as a ballot paper be the site for such trolling?

How the laws about registering a political party work

Party registration has been around for a bit over four decades. Its main purpose is to aid voters. Voting is compulsory in Australia and people tend to vote........

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