SYDNEY: Australia faced the "more and more likely" prospect of a hung parliament Saturday, with neither the government nor the opposition looking assured of an election majority, party officials said.

"I think a hung parliament is looking more and more likely," said Senator Nick Minchin, one of the opposition Liberal/National coalition`s top strategists.

"I can`t yet find the 17 needed by the coalition," he said, referring to the number of extra seats the conservatives need to win to secure a majority in the 150-seat parliament.

Australia has not had a hung parliament since 1940, in the midst of World War II, but Saturday`s election was going down to the wire.

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith appeared to agree a hung parliament was likely, telling the ABC that his ruling Labor party was unlikely to total the 76 seats it needs to rule in its own right.
Antony Green, the chief election expert for state boradcaster ABC, said an evenly divided parliament looked likely as the two parties battled to win crucial marginal seats in Queensland and New South Wales.

"I can`t see Labor getting 76 (seats), equally I can`t see the coalition getting 76," Green told the national broadcaster.

BDST: 1910 HRS, August 21, 2010