Pauline Hanson has garnered significant Senate support in NSW, especially in the closest Coalition-held seats in outer-suburban, provincial and rural areas. Under election rules, the Australian Electoral Commission pays parties and candidates $2.62 for every first-preference vote they get in each state or division in which they attract more than 4 per cent support. Ms Hanson's party got 9 per cent of the upper house vote in Queensland and just over 4 per cent in NSW. As long as her NSW vote doesn't dip below the threshold as counting continues she will get about $765,000 for her Senate vote. Each of her 15 lower house candidates also got more than 4 per cent of the vote, giving her a further $400,000.

Pauline Hanson puts media on notice on the Facebook page Pauline Hanson's Please Explain. Credit:Facebook She is expected to benefit from the public funding more than any other party outside the Coalition, Labor and the Greens, whether she ends up with just two senators or as many as six. The major parties are expected to get north of $20 million each from the AEC. The Greens are likely to get close to $6 million. The total cost to the taxpayer is expected to be around $60 million. Nick Xenophon may well help decide who forms the next government. Credit:Paul Jeffers A number of unsuccessful independent candidates are also in line for a healthy payday.

Former crossbenchers Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott both attracted about 26,000 first-preference votes, meaning they will take home a little under $70,000 each. Mr Oakeshott only threw his hat into the ring a few weeks before polling day and has said he was running his campaign on the "smell of an oily rag". Tony Windsor failed to unseat Barnaby Joyce in New England. He has since said he spent about $50,000 on campaigning and he would keep the rest for his next campaign. Television presenter James Mathison will get an estimated $23,000 for his roughly 9000 first preference votes in the Sydney seat of Warringah, which was retained by former prime minister Tony Abbott. Former independent MP Rob Oakeshott says he will use his election funding to pay for his three-week campaign and use the balance to contest Cowper at the next election. Credit:Andrew Meares

The only other minor party to come close to Ms Hanson's total will be the Nick Xenophon Team. The populist's 21 per cent upper house vote in his native state of South Australia will give him more than $400,000. All 11 of his SA lower house candidates also cleared the threshold, as did four of his interstate candidates. That should net him another $500,000, taking his total to close to a million – up from $642,000 in 2013. Derryn Hinch. Credit:Fairfax But Senator Xenophon says he won't be able to follow through on his plan to pay back his main benefactor, Melbourne businessman Ian Melrose, who as revealed by Fairfax Media, donated $115,000 to the crossbencher. Senator Xenophon says he did not do well enough in states outside SA. "It's not going to work out. That's the harsh reality," he said.

Derryn Hinch's strong showing in Victoria means he is in line for about $350,000 in election funding. Fellow Senate crossbencher Jacqui Lambie will get about $60,000 for her campaign. The Sex Party will also get a piece of the pie. It managed to clear the threshold in both the ACT and NT, giving it about $30,000. The vast majority of the election funding will be paid out by the end of the month. The Greens want the law changed so the AEC only refunds actual campaign spending and candidates cannot make a profit.