{{Short description|Australian politician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}} {{Use Australian English|date=November 2016}} {{Infobox officeholder | office = Senator-elect for Western Australia | term_start = 7 September 2013 | term_end = 18 February 2014 | state = Western Australia | name = Wayne Dropulich | occupation = Civil engineer | party = Australian Sports Party (2013–2015) | birth_date = {{Birth based on age as of date|42|2013|9|9}}<ref name=":0"/> | year = 2013-2014 }}
'''Wayne Dropulich''' (born 1970 or 1971)<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|title=Dropulich in with a sporting chance|last=Taylor|first=Paige|date=9 September 2013|work=The Australian|page=5}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/sports-partys-likely-senator-wayne-dropulich-admits-a-lack-of-nonsports-policies-20130909-2tg1k.html|title=Sports Party's likely senator Wayne Dropulich admits a lack of non-sports policies|last=Hopkin|first=Michael|date=2013-09-09|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=2017-11-14|language=en-US}}</ref> is an Australian former politician who was elected to the Senate as a member of the Australian Sports Party in the final count of the 2013 federal election prior to the Western Australian Senate count being declared void by the Court of Disputed Returns. Dropulich nominated for the special Senate election for Western Australia held on 5 April 2014, but failed to win a seat.
== Background == Dropulich, a Perth-based civil engineer and mining project manager who formerly worked at Rio Tinto, conceived the idea to form his own political party with the help of friends in early 2013.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite news|title=Grassroots victory in sight|last=Gerritsen|first=Natalie|date=9 September 2013|work=The Australian Financial Review|page=4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/election-2013/only-1900-votes-but-hes-likely-to-take-a-seat/news-story/6b60e55d0bdae32cd4c9bfc808a8cb4e|title=Only 1900 votes, but he's likely to take a seat|last=Nicolas Perpitch and Paige Taylor|date=10 September 2013|website=The Australian}}</ref> The former gridiron player for the Australian representative team achieved the required 500 members for his Australian Sports Party to be eligible for party status by asking friends and acquaintances to join. Dropulich has said that he had been in interested in politics his whole life despite having never been a member of a political party. Following his initial election, he received criticism for his non-committal stance towards a range of political issues.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />
== 2013 federal election == {{See also|2013 Australian federal election}} Although he received only 1,908 first preference votes in the 2013 federal election,<ref name=":2" /> under the single transferable vote system in place for Senate elections he was able to gain the required 123,304 votes to meet the Senate quota in Western Australia. The Australian Sports Party had been involved in preference swap deals organised by Glenn Druery as part of the Minor Party Alliance.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-09-05/bitter-dispute-erupts-over-senate-preferences-in-queensland/4939300|title=Bitter dispute erupts over Senate preferences in Queensland|last=Bormann|first=Trevor|date=5 September 2013|work=ABC News|language=en-AU}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/special-features/alliance-of-micro-parties-boosts-odds-for-likes-of-one-nation-or-shooters-and-fishers-gaining-senate-spot-through-preferences/story-fnho52jp-1226713114765|title=Micro parties alliance boosts their odds|last=Wood|first=Alicia|date=5 September 2013|work=The Daily Telegraph|language=en}}</ref> Initially, Dropulich did not win a seat, but was elected to the Senate upon a recount of the ballots.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/dropulich-joins-palmers-alliance-20131111-2xcnx.html|title=Dropulich joins Palmer's alliance|last=Aston|first=Heath|date=2013-11-11|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=2017-11-14|language=en-US}}</ref>
The Australian Electoral Commission admitted to losing a significant number of Western Australian Senate ballots prior to them being counted, which resulted in the election being referred to the High Court sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-04/wa-set-to-head-back-to-polls-in-six-senate-by-elections/5066718|title=AEC confirms WA Senate election result, apologises over 1,375 lost ballots|last=Griffiths|first=Emma|date=4 November 2013|work=ABC News|language=en-AU}}</ref> Dropulich spent 114 days as a senator-elect, until the High Court declared void the Western Australian Senate results on 18 February 2014.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|title=Good sport in defeat|last=Emerson|first=Daniel|date=7 April 2014|work=The West Australian|page=6}}</ref>
Dropulich stood again for election on the Australian Sports Party ticket at the Western Australia special Senate election in 2014 but did not win a seat.<ref name=":3" />
He subsequently opened his own mortgage-broking business in Perth, Senator Finance.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.pressreader.com/australia/the-west-australian/20181222/283463552414788 | title=On the Wayne | work=The West Australian | date=22 December 2018 | accessdate=7 February 2020}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dropulich, Wayne}} Category:Living people Category:Western Australian federal politicians Category:Year of birth missing (living people)