Julian Assange, the WikiLeaksmastermind currently holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London, has his sights set on a new frontier — a career in Australian politics.
In an interview with Australia's Fairfax media, Assange said plans to register an Australian WikiLeaks party were ''significantly advanced'', and indicated he intended to run as a candidate in the Australian Senate (the upper house of the Australian parliament).
Not deterred by the fact he cannot legally leave a building in Central London, Assange said he would be able to qualify as an overseas candidate New South Wales or Victoria, and his biological father, John Shipton, is in Australia co-ordinating the creation of the party.
While Assange's plan might sound fanciful, there are reasons for him to be confident. The Sydney Morning Herald cites two polls conducted by UMR Research that said Assange would be a "competitive Senate candidate". One online poll conducted by the Age suggested that 73% of readers would vote for Assange.
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