Leader of the Government in the Senate (Australia)
The current Leader of the Government in the Senate is Mathias Cormann. The current Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate is Simon Birmingham, who was appointed on the same date following the resignation of Mitch Fifield.
Crossbencher
The Australian Senate, which uses the Single Transferable Vote form of proportional representation to elect its 76-seat chamber, frequently has a number of Senators on the crossbench that the governing party has to negotiate with to get legislation passed. The 2 July 2016 double dissolution election, for example resulted in a chamber with the Liberal/National Coalition having 30 seats, the Australian Labor Party with 26 seats, the Greens with 9 seats, One Nation with 4 seats and the Nick Xenophon Team with 3 seats. The other 4 seats were each won by Derryn Hinch, the Liberal Democratic Party, Family First, and Jacqui Lambie. The number of crossbenchers increased by two to a record 20. The Liberal/National Coalition government required at least nine additional votes to reach a Senate majority.