IT'S jokingly referred to as a tablecloth, but the Senate ballot sheet is a "big piece of paper that can make a big difference", says a Tamworth man standing for the Upper House.
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Disability support worker Chris Buckman is second on the Australian Democrats NSW ticket, and he said its motto - "keep the bastards honest" - tells you everything you need to know about the party.
"If you think of the Upper House as the gatekeeper, that's where you want high-quality politicians who bring integrity and commitment to the table," Mr Buckman said.
"For a long time, people have felt that politicians are in it for themselves, and sadly many have demonstrated that recently. We want to change that.
"We make sure every one of our candidate fits our ideals by using an independent third-party recruitment process."
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Mr Buckman said the Australian Democrats, who up until recently had four continuous decades of representation in the Senate, had a strong history of "keeping people honest", and closely examining every policy to ensure it was good for the country.
And while political accountability is a key pillar of the party, it's just one of several issues that make up its policy platform.
"Personally, there are some big pieces of legislation around social policy and our social fabric that I'm concerned with," he said.
"The rollout of the NDIS [National Disability Insurance Scheme] is one. Six years in and it's still in a diabolic state. That is a real worry."
Mr Buckman urged people to look for the Australian Democrats on "the tablecloth".
"We are really conscious of people talking about the Lower House election like a presidential-style race between Scott Morrison and Bill Shorten," he said.
"It doesn't matter as much who wins the Lower House, if you have the balance in the Upper House, it's not ideal for either party have a majority there."