In what is clearly the closest election for Prime Minister in Australia in over 70, the results could take weeks to decipher. Neither side, the Labor Party nor opposition conservative Coalition will likely lock up the 76 seats of the 150 seat Lower House that is needed for a firm victory. Political analysts are on the fence with what will happened next. There are several outcomes, some of which could literally take several weeks to finally occur.

With the 2010 Australian Election in a sort of deadlock, it is hard not to notice the uncanny similarities of this election to the 2000 United States Presidential election where George W. Bush, won the nomination over Al Gore without having the majority of popular votes. After weeks of recounting votes, and the American people in the dark, Bush emerged as the victor, but took heat from Democrats throughout his presidency for the narrow victory.

What happens next on the Australian political front is anyone’s guess. A new election is possible, although not probable. More likely would be a deal taking place where a minority government is put into affect. The problem here is that most experts feel such a government would have a tough time lasting longer than 18-24 months. Neither political party would have much success in passing new legislation. Whatever happens, it certainly makes for an interesting story, one for the history books.