The Australian electoral system comprises the laws and processes used for the election of members of the Australian Parliament and is governed primarily by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. The system presently has a number of distinctive features including compulsory enrolment, compulsory voting, majority-preferential instant-runoff voting in single-member seats to elect the lower house, the House of Representatives, and the use of the single transferable vote proportional representation system to elect the upper house, the Senate.
The Australia First Party (NSW) Incorporated is an Australian far-right political party founded in 1996 by Graeme Campbell. The policies of Australia First have been described as ultranationalistic, anti-multicultural and economically protectionist. The party's logo includes the Southern Cross of the Eureka Flag.
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is the independent federal agency in charge of organising, conducting and supervising federal Australian elections, by-elections and referendums.
The Communist Party of Australia (CPA) is a communist party in Australia. It was founded in 1971 as the Socialist Party of Australia (SPA) and adopted its current name in 1996. The party was established by former members of the original Communist Party of Australia who resigned or were expelled due to internal disagreements over the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia and the party's adoption of Eurocommunism. The party had its first and only electoral win in 2012 when they gained a seat in the Auburn City Council, which they held until 2016.
Elections in Australia take place periodically to elect the legislature of the Commonwealth of Australia, as well as for each Australian state and territory and for local government councils. Elections in all jurisdictions follow similar principles, although there are minor variations between them. The elections for the Australian Parliament are held under the federal electoral system, which is uniform throughout the country, and the elections for state and territory Parliaments are held under the electoral system of each state and territory.
The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party (SFF) is an Australian political party. It primarily advocates for increased funding and services for rural and regional Australia, protecting the right to farm, enhancing commercial and recreational fishing, tougher sentencing for illegal firearm trade and usage, and relaxing gun control for law abiding citizens.
The Unity Party was a small multiculturist party in Australia, formed in 1997 and primarily active in the state of New South Wales. It was formed with the aim of opposing the rise of the controversial anti-immigration politician Pauline Hanson. Although initially billed as a party to unite Australians of all ethnicities against racism, Unity failed to draw significant support outside Australia's East Asian ethnic communities. After the demise of Pauline Hanson as a political force, Unity has accordingly shifted its focus onto ethnic community affairs at a local government level.
A group voting ticket (GVT) is a shortcut for voters in a preferential voting system, where a voter can mark support for a party slate instead of marking preferences for individual candidates. For multi-member electoral divisions with single transferable voting, a group or party registers a GVT before an election with the electoral commission. When a voter selects a group or party "above the line" on a ballot paper, their vote is distributed according to the registered GVT for that group.
The Liberal Democratic Party, shortened as LDP, Liberal Democrats, or Lib Dems, is an Australian political party founded in Canberra in 2001. The party espouses smaller government and supports policies that are based on classical liberal, libertarian principles, such as lower taxes, opposing restrictions on civil liberties, decentralisation, utilising nuclear energy, and the relaxation of smoking laws.
What Women Want was an Australian political organisation launched in April 2007 which, its website says, "aims to be Australia's first female political party dedicated to advancing issues affecting Australian women". The organisation was formed by Justine Caines, a mother of six and political activist from rural New South Wales.
Deborah Mary O'Neill is an Australian politician who has been a Senator for New South Wales since 2013. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party and formerly represented the seat of Robertson as a member of the House of Representatives from 2010 to 2013.
The Sustainable Australia Party, formerly the Sustainable Population Party, is an Australian political party. Formed in 2010, it describes itself as being "from the political centre".
Animal Justice Party (AJP) is a political party in Australia founded in 2009. The party was registered by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on 3 May 2011. The party is also registered in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, and the Australian Capital Territory. The AJP is the first political party in Australia formed solely to advance animal welfare issues.
The Science Party, formerly known as Future Party, is an Australian political party that was established on 2 July 2013. The founding leader, James Jansson, was studying for his Doctorate at the Kirby Institute during the party's formation, with a focus on advancing Australian society through technical and long-term solutions. On 22 March 2016, the name was changed to The Science Party after registering with the Australian Electoral Commission. The Science Party has run candidates for the 2013, 2016 and 2019 Federal elections, as well as several By-elections in between.
The Voluntary Euthanasia Party (VEP) was a minor political party in Australia, founded in early 2013 by Corey McCann to advocate for legislative change to allow voluntary euthanasia in Australia. The party's inception was strongly supported by Dr Philip Nitschke, director of Exit International and Richard Mills, then President of Dying with Dignity NSW.
An independent politician is a person who has served in a political office while not affiliated to any political party. Many of these have either resigned or been expelled from membership in political parties, and some have gone on to form their own political parties over time.
The Australian Progressives is a minor Australian political party established in September 2014.
The Seniors United Party of Australia is an Australian political party registered with the Australian Electoral Commission. It was known as Seniors United NSW until 3 March 2016. The party was founded by Ray Morritt, Nick Agnew, Frank Fitzpatrick and Neil Smith who were dissatisfied with the NSW Government's legislation on retirement villages and other seniors issues.
Flux, is a political movement which aims to replace the world's elected legislatures with a new system known as issue-based direct democracy (IBDD). Flux originated in and is most active in Australia, but it is also active internationally, with groups existing in the United States and Brazil.
Independents CAN, formerly Independents For Climate Action Now (ICAN), is an Australian political party which was registered on 10 April 2019. It seeks to prosecute policies relating to climate change, such as planning for climate change related emergencies and phasing out fossil fuels to replace with renewable energy.
