Trump-Musk meltdown & the administration’s ‘crystal ball’
Musk may be out, but the influence of the tech bros has never been greater.
One vote. One value.
Australians know how to solve national problems, but our political system protects the duopoly that creates them. That’s why we need proportional representation.
Hearing voices: why the Nats should be watching their backs
The community independent movement did not begin in Sydney or Melbourne, but in the bush.
The 2025 federal election is the first where a major party received fewer votes than independents and minor parties.
While the May election result was remarkable for the low vote share going to the major parties, it was just the most recent of a very long trend.
Australians should be proud of our preferential voting, but there is an alternative
A record number of Australians voted for independents and minor parties at the most recent federal election election.
Protecting your ABC
The ABC is always under attack. The best thing we can do for democracy is defend it.
May 2025
Why the election’s closest seat went unnoticed: Too close to Calwell
Updated 30/05/2025 The outer-Melbourne electorate of Calwell was named “Australia’s most unpredictable seat” by The Age after the election and was – aside from those going to a recount – the last seat to be called. The AEC labelled the counting process for the seat “likely the most complex in Australia’s history”. The count is
More than 70% of Australians saw misleading ads during the election campaign – poll
A new poll conducted for The Australia Institute has found that 72% of voters saw misleading political advertisements during the recent election campaign, with well over half of those exposed to misleading ads every day.
The election exposed weaknesses in Australian democracy – but the next parliament can fix them
Australia has some very strong democratic institutions – like an independent electoral commission, Saturday voting, full preferential voting and compulsory voting. These ensure that elections are free from corruption; that electorate boundaries are not based on partisan bias; and that most Australians turn out to vote. They are evidence of Australia’s proud history as an
The rise of early voting in Australian elections
Are voters missing out on more than their democracy sausage?
End of the LNP Coalition would makes this the largest crossbench in the post-WWII era
A large crossbench might seem unusual, but before WWII they were commonplace in Australia.
Coalition’s on-again, off-again ‘situationship’ has even those closest baffled
If anyone knows what is going on in the National party, could you please stand up? Interested parties in the Nationals would love to know.
The ‘better America’ bias
Donald Trump isn’t an aberration – he’s as much a product of American history as JFK or Barack Obama.
Energy Australia apology and admissions expose dodgy offsets
The days of big polluters using dodgy carbon offsets to greenwash their products are numbered.
Bellowing from the sidelines. The declining influence of Australia’s traditional media.
The days of media moguls deciding Australian elections are over, according to new research by The Australia Institute.
“Don’t waste it”: Labor’s historic policy opportunity
With the influence of the right-wing media waning, the Labor Government can use its massive majority to pursue big reforms.
Why Dutton’s ‘one tune’ division and animosity didn’t work for Australians
Friends, Australians, countrymen, we come to bury Peter Dutton, not to praise him.
What will Labor do with power? And what happened to the Greens? | Richard Denniss on ABC News
Richard Denniss joined ABC’s Afternoon Briefing to reflect on what the election result means for policy reform in Australia. Interview with Tom Lowry.
If not now, when?
After the election, the re-elected Labor Government has an extraordinary opportunity to make big structural changes to the economy.
Australians see review and scrutiny role for Australian Senate as Greens likely to hold sole balance of power
At last Saturday’s election, the Albanese Labor Government won a large majority and a historically significant swing towards it, but seven in ten Australians still expect the Senate to review every government policy on its merits.
A chance to be brave: understanding Australia’s election result
With the influence of its historical opponents waning, is anything standing in the way of the Labor Government passing ambitious reforms?
Australia rejected the Dutton-Murdoch agenda, now we’ll see if Labor does the same
We are about to see who the Australian Labor Party really is, in 2025.
Open letter calls on newly elected Parliament to introduce Whistleblower Protection Authority, sustained funding for integrity agencies to protect from government pressure.
Integrity experts, including former judges, ombudsmen and leading academics, have signed an open letter, coordinated by The Australia Institute and Fairer Future and published today in The Canberra Times, calling on the newly elected Parliament of Australia to address weaknesses in Australian political integrity. The open letter warns that a decade of decline in agencies
Knee-jerk anti-Chinese redbaiting in Australian elections
In the final days of the campaign, independent MP Monique Ryan and Labor’s housing minister Clare O’Neil faced questions about the support of the Hubei Association for their respective campaigns.
Polling: Majority of Australians support power-sharing parliament
Most Independent / Other voters support crossbench to negotiate for best outcomes for nation and electorate
More senators for the ACT: Unity ticket, bar one
A four-way debate on ABC Radio Canberra on 1 May produced a rare moment of unity between election candidates. The main candidates for the ACT’s two senate seats agreed that Canberra needs more senators.
What a power-sharing parliament may hold
Over the course of the election campaign, there’s been a lot of fear-mongering around the prospect of a “hung parliament” or “minority government”.
Election entrée: Dark money and your money pay for most of the political ads you’re seeing
At this stage of the election, you have no doubt seen plenty of political ads.
April 2025
Could the polls be wrong?
The polls are pointing to a likely Labor victory on Saturday, but could Dutton’s suburban strategy still bear fruit?
Election entrée: Longest wait for results
After the 2010 election, independent crossbenchers negotiated for 17 days with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott to decide who to support.
General Enquiries
Emily Bird Office Manager
mail@australiainstitute.org.au
Media Enquiries
Glenn Connley Senior Media Advisor
glenn.connley@australiainstitute.org.au