No K-A-T-T-E-R in party name, “a travesty.”

Wot's in a name? -- she sez . . . An' then she sighs,

An' clasps 'er little 'ands, an' rolls 'er eyes.

"A rose," she sez, "be any other name Would smell the same.

Oh, w'erefore art you Romeo, young sir?

Chuck yer ole pot, an' change yer moniker!”

– C.J. Dennis; The Sentimental bloke, The Play.

Selection of a name is an important factor in the success of a political party and a number of factors come into play in such an endeavor. It has to grab the attention, or give an indication of the policies, direction, and principles, of the party; in other words shout what the membership are about. Most choose a sensible name like the Liberal Democratic Party, but some go for the sensational like Screaming Lord Such who formed the “Official Monster Raving Loony Party,” a personal favorite.

Some narcissists however when forming parties, like to use the founders name in the party brand, as the Peronists did in Argentina quite successfully. Well, the party triumphed in elections but was a disaster for the nation. We have had examples of this in Australia with the Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party, and currently, the Bob Katter’s One Australia Party.

The Hansonites were fairly laid back about the name and were generally referred to as One Nation, they had policies, not very good ones but hey; a policy is a policy. On the other hand, Bob Katter’s One Australia Party has a problem with the Electoral Commission naming the party the Australia Party on ballots, insisting that unless Bob’s name is there, party members will not know who to vote for:

Katter's Australian Party has taken legal action in the Supreme Court in Brisbane to destroy printed ballots that only use the abbreviated name 'Australian Party'. His party registered the shortened name with the Queensland Electoral Commission, but now wants to use the full name to identify Mr Katter.

Mr Katter says people will not know who to vote for if his name is not on the ballot paper. "If the name K-A-T-T-E-R is taken off the ballot paper, the implications for us are not much short of diabolical," he said.

This is a pretty good indication of the targeted voters the party is aiming at. It appears to be those who are sufficiently intellectually handicapped as to be unable to tell the difference between Labor, LNP, Greens, One Nation, Family First, and One Australian Party without Bob’s name out in front with caps lock on. This really says it all.