Gun laws are expected to be an important issue for some voters in Orange in Saturday's state election.
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Nationals candidate Kate Hazelton said the threat of gun laws being relaxed worried voters, particularly young mothers while the Australian Conservatives' Garry McMahon said it was an issue in the wake of the Christchurch shootings on March 15.
Greens' candidate Stephen Nugent and Country Labor's Luke Sanger and said while it might concern some people it would not influence the result.
The Member for Orange and Shooters Fishers and Farmers candidate Phil Donato said his party would not seek to water down gun laws if he was re-elected.
"We want the status quo to remain," he said.
Mr Donato said the SFF had held the balance of power in the upper house of state parliament with the Christian Democrats for several years and the gun laws had not been watered down.
"Our policy is for responsible gun ownership," he said.
Mr Donato also said he would not form a minority government with either the Liberals and Nationals or Labor if his party held the balance of power in the lower house.
"We won't be forming a minority coalition with any party. We will stay on the crossbenches and hold whoever the government is accountable," he said.
He said he did not believe the Christchurch events would influence Orange voters.
"It was a real tragedy. People know the NZ gun laws are far, far different to what we have here. Those weapons in NZ are not available here. NZ is NZ and NSW is NSW," he said.
Mr Donato said it had been a difficult campaign.
"It's been very dirty. It's been a long campaign," he said. "There have been a lot of different issues, we've had signs defaced, posters pinched and other things I won't go into."
However, Mrs Hazelton said voters were concerned about weapons.
"Guns of course will be an issue. I'm a farmer and so our family have shooters' licences," she said.
It's been very dirty. It's been a long campaign.
- Phil Donato, Member for Orange
"But a lot of people, particularly young mothers, are concerned about the repealing of our gun laws," Mrs Hazelton said.
"We need to remove the Shooters member from parliament, he can loosen the gun laws."
Mrs Hazelton said she did not have a problem with her party preferencing the Liberal Democrats even though it has more radical gun policies than the SFF.
"He himself (LD candidate Stephen Bisgrove) will never be elected. It's no more hypocritical than the Shooters doing a deal with Labor and the Greens," she said.
A lot of people, particularly young mothers, are concerned about the repealing of our gun laws.
- Kate Hazelton, Nationals candidate
Mr McMahon said the media coverage of the Christchurch events would influence some people in Orange and gun laws would be an issue.
"I think it will be," he said.
Mr Sanger said there were mixed feelings on gun laws in Orange.
"A lot of people think it is a big issue but I don't think it is a major issue," he said.
"If guns were an issue then what happened in Christchurch indirectly would have become an issue [in Orange."
Mr Nugent said the gun laws issue was not significant in Orange.
"I doubt it would really change the result but there will be some people expressing legitimate concerns about watering down gun laws," he said.
"There will be some people who will be questioning [what might happen]."
Voting booths will be open from 8am-6pm on Saturday.
Orange is the most marginal seat in NSW after Mr Donato won by just 50 votes at the 2016 byelection. It had been held by the Country Party/Nationals since 1947.
- To get the latest updates on the election and the counting follow the Central Western Daily online from Saturday morning.
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