We've finally got a date for what's being called the "Super Saturday" of federal by-elections and it's Saturday July 28 ... but the Labor Party is super pissed because that just so happens to fall during its National Conference.
Why are we having these five by-elections, again?
Earlier this month, four politicians resigned after a High Court ruling determined they were ineligible because they didn't renounce their dual citizenship before running for parliament.
Labor's Justine Keay (Braddon, Tasmania); Josh Wilson (Fremantle, WA); Susan Lamb (Longman, Queensland); and former Nick Xenophon now Centre Alliance's Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, South Australia) all said they would recontest their seats.
Another Labor MP, Tim Hammond (Perth, WA), also resigned to spend more time with his family.
So, that leaves us with FIVE seats sitting empty in the House of Representatives.
And the need for five by-elections to be held across four states and two time zones.
So, why July 28th? It's nine weeks away!?
Speaker Tony Smith said the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) recommended the by-elections all be held on one day for convenience.
The AEC also recommended that the vote be held after July 21, so it didn't clash with school holidays, and so the AEC had time to bring in the new candidate rules.
Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers notes that the next legal possible date for the by-elections is 30 June but a 28 July poll is "optimal".
"My aim in providing this advice is not to become involved in the politics associated with the by-election (or, indeed, any election): that is a matter for candidates, parties and the press," Rogers wrote.
This is the full advice from AEC to Speaker Tony Smith on the by-elections (delivered May 23) @dailytelegraph
Hence Smith's decision to hold the by-elections on Saturday July 28.
It's taken more than two weeks for the date to be announced, because the government wasn't finished drafting the new regulations which require candidates to declare their family history, to avoid another round of dual citizens.
Labor is calling the decision to hold the by-elections on the final day of its National Conference a "deliberate delay" and a "sneaky tactic" to disadvantage Labor.
@PhillipCoorey what a coincidence! https://t.co/iAVuXug86S
Labor is now considering whether to move or indefinitely postpone the conference.
Labor deputy leader Tanya Plibersek said the by-election date will have implications for the party's national conference, scheduled to run from July 26-28 in Adelaide.
"Our activists will want to be out in the community campaigning for Labor, not sitting in a conference centre," Plibersek said.
Labor isn't just concerned that all its politicians, staff and volunteers would be tied up in Adelaide during the crucial by-elections, but is also worried about the internal fighting that plays out during policy debates and is splashed across the media.
"This is absolutely outrageous, they're rigging the parliament to keep Labor members out...we'll fight this," one Labor politician told BuzzFeed News.
Plibersek questions why it has taken the speaker so long to choose a date, when the by-elections for New England and Bennelong were called within days.
"This is a disgraceful delay and a sneaky tactic from Malcolm Turnbull. He is just trying to buy time so he can dump his toxic $80 billion tax handout to big business before the by-elections.
"This deliberate delay is an insult to these communities who will be unrepresented for nearly three months," Plibersek said. "It shows Malcolm Turnbull doesn’t care about them."
"This looks partisan," Labor senator Penny Wong told AEC commissioner Tom Rogers in Senate Estimates on Thursday.
Rogers fired back: "Several members of the house have resigned, resigned as a result of failing to follow procedures, and now somehow the AEC is being fingered as being responsible for the outcomes of this."
Wong noted that the Bennelong by-election was held on December 16, the first day of New South Wales school holidays.
The 2016 federal election held on July 2 also fell smack bang in the middle of school holidays.
Rogers rejected the accusation that he was partisan and said he didn't pick the date, only recommend to the speaker that school holidays are not ideal times to hold by-elections.
"My aim in providing this advice is not to become involved in the politics associated with the by-election: that is a matter for candidates, parties and the press," Rogers wrote.