"Supporters of Liberal senator Jim Molan have taken it upon themselves to campaign for a 'below the line' vote, which in our view breaks the Coalition agreement and seriously harms the chances of a Nationals senator being elected," they said. "We are not taking this extraordinary step lightly ... this is not something we want to do, but we need every one of our members to vote below the line for Perin Davey and Sam Farraway, and to encourage everyone they know to do the same." NSW Nationals candidate for the Senate Perin Davey is in the difficult third spot on the Coalition ticket. Credit:Chelsea Sutton The Coalition is running a joint Senate ticket in NSW, with the Liberals' Hollie Hughes and Andrew Bragg in the top two positions (almost certain to be elected) and the Nationals' Perin Davey in the third spot (far less likely). Senator Molan was relegated to the unwinnable fourth spot by Liberal preselectors and is running his own unauthorised campaign calling on people to vote for him below the line.

Loading Mr Cadell said the Nationals were primarily responding to Senator Molan's decision to take out advertisements in regional newspapers, directly targeting their voter base. He described Senator Molan's actions as "a bit mean". "We're disappointed," he said. "We have had a tight Coalition for a long time that has worked very strongly. Jim's an honourable guy, he's done a lot of things in his life well. But at a time when a bit of loyalty and a bit of team spirit [is needed], it's just disappointing." Mr Cadell said the instructions were sent to members only, and volunteers would still hand out the Coalition's usual how-to-vote cards on polling day. Senator Molan's campaign is also causing grief in his own party. Liberal MP John Alexander was busted on tape telling a voter how she could ignore the party's orders and vote for Senator Molan below the line.

In the audio, a self-proclaimed "new voter" asks how she can vote in the Senate, to which Mr Alexander appears to supply a how-to-vote card and say: "That's how you should vote in the Senate – unless you want to vote for Jim Molan, which you may well, and then you've got to fill out all 12. So you put Jim in front and then you vote like that." There is also "white-hot anger" among Tony Abbott's campaign organisers that supporters of Senator Molan are recruiting volunteers on the northern beaches away from the campaign to re-elect Mr Abbott in Warringah. At least one insider labelled it "sAbbottage". As The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age revealed on Tuesday, Senator Molan's backers have asked for "hundreds" of volunteers to distribute his how-to-vote cards on polling day. Senator Molan told 2GB radio he was a "a great believer in the Coalition" and was attracting back to the Liberal Party many voters who had "moved away" to other parties.