Anti-halal leader Kirralie Smith joins Cory Bernardi's Australian Conservatives
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Anti-halal leader Kirralie Smith joins Cory Bernardi's Australian Conservatives

The anti-halal certification campaigner Kirralie Smith, who was a NSW Senate candidate for the right-wing Australian Liberty Alliance at the last election, has joined Cory Bernardi's Australian Conservatives.

Asked if she was planning to run for office at the next federal election for Australian Conservatives, Mrs Smith said she was dedicated to supporting the new party in any way she could, whether that meant putting stamps on envelopes or again running for the Senate.

Kirralie Smith has been described as a potential leader for a new conservative movement.

Kirralie Smith has been described as a potential leader for a new conservative movement.

She said it was clear from the last election that at least 1½ million Australians had lost faith with the major parties and she wanted conservatives in Australia to unite behind Senator Bernardi's movement.

Mrs Smith, viewed by some as a potential leader in right-wing circles outside mainstream politics, confirmed she joined the Australian Conservatives on Friday, having known Senator Bernardi for about seven years.

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Senator Bernardi defected from the Liberal Party earlier this year.

Mrs Smith is a member of the Q Society, which shares many senior members with the Australian Liberty Alliance. She, along with the Q Society, were recently sued for defamation by an Arab Australian business, though the proceedings have been settled.

Mrs Smith and the Q Society are working on a documentary on their campaign against halal food certification in Australia, focusing on the Senate inquiry that Senator Bernardi supported.

A Q Society fundraiser attracted controversy when another supporter of Mrs Smith, the former Liberal Party MP Ross Cameron, made a speech that was widely interpreted to be homophobic.

Mrs Smith's decision to join the Australian Conservatives may present a challenge to Pauline Hanson's One Nation in NSW, especially given her large and growing social media profile.

Mrs Smith told Fairfax Media she believed Ms Hanson "rode in on" the anti-halal certification protest movement during the past election, but in the months since has failed to act on the issue.

While Australian Conservatives share with One Nation a stance against the perceived threat of Islam in Australia, Senator Bernardi's party takes a more open view of the economy trade, which is more in line with the Liberal Party.

Many observers have speculated Senator Bernardi's long-term goal has been to establish his party to have a machine in place in case One Nation support collapses.

Nick O'Malley is a senior writer and a former US correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

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