In 1977, as an organiser for the New Liberal Movement, he was closely associated with John Siddons, Robin Millhouse and others in formation of the Centre-Line Party which was later renamed the Australian Democrats.
He has been credited with recruiting Don Chipp as leader of the new party[2][3] for which he unsuccessfully contested the 1977 and the 1980 Senate elections as the lead WA Democrat candidate.
During that time, he mounted an unsuccessful Supreme Court action to prevent circulation of a national ombudsman's report, and acted as campaign manager to former party member Shirley de la Hunty who contested the 1989 Western Australian state election as an independent candidate.
In 1993, following the collapse of his Australian Business College, he returned to serving the party in senior administrative positions, both state and federal, and successfully supported and mentored the Senate candidature of Andrew Murray.
In the 1980s Evans and family members founded the Australian Business College, Perth, which collapsed in January 1993[9] after controversial dealings with overseas students.