We commend to your attention this wonderful article in The Guardian, celebrating the people who make our Democracy Sausages possible.
Author: Loki (Page 1 of 7)
This is one of two posts on this site, looking at the arguments for and against this year’s referendum, as described in the official booklet, which you can download from the Australian Electoral Commission here. The other post can be found here. These posts will analyse and criticise the arguments made by both the Yes and No sides.
We are also including a selection of links to fact checking sites, in case you’re looking for more detail than we’ve gone into here:
- How do the ‘yes’ and ‘no’ cases stack up? Constitutional law experts take a look (article at The Conversation).
- RMIT FactLab (assorted posts about specific claims).
- ABC FactCheck (assorted posts about specific claims).
- We gave the Voice to Parliament pamphlets to fact checkers. Here’s what they said (article at SBS News).
- Voice to Parliament referendum essays – annotated and factchecked: yes case and no case (at The Guardian).
Enough preamble. On with the analysis.
Continue reading
Hiya folks.
NSW is going to the polls on March 25, 2023, and if you’re a proud citizen of Australia’s most populous state1Or if you live there and you hate it, we’re not judging you, you should get out and vote.
We won’t be covering this election on the site, since as Victorians we know little of the local issues particular to New South Wales, but if you’re covering it, feel free to drop us a line and we’ll happily link to you.
And finally, here are some tools to make voting easier:
- Enrol to vote or update your enrolment
- How to vote
- Democracy Sausage – not yet updated
Summary
| Website: | greens.org.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — YouTube — Instagram |
| Slogans: | The Time Is Now |
| Themes: | Socially progressive, economically left wing, pro-environment. Urgent need for climate action. |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victoria, North Eastern Metropolitan, Northern Metropolitan, Northern Victoria, Southern Metropolitan, South Eastern Metropolitan, Western Metropolitan, Western Victoria Lower House: Albert Park, Ashwood, Bass, Bayswater, Bellarine, Benambra, Bendigo East, Bendigo West, Bentleigh, Berwick, Box Hill, Brighton, Broadmeadows, Brunswick, Bulleen, Bundoora, Carrum, Caulfield, Clarinda, Cranbourne, Croydon, Dandenong, Eildon, Eltham, Essendon, Eureka, Euroa, Evelyn, Footscray, Frankston, Geelong, Gippsland East, Gippsland South, Glen Waverley, Greenvale, Hastings, Hawthorn, Ivanhoe, Kalkallo, Kew, Kororoit, Lara, Laverton, Lowan, Macedon, Malvern, Melbourne, Melton, Mildura, Mill Park, Monbulk, Mordialloc, Mornington, Morwell, Mulgrave, Murray Plains, Narre Warren North, Narre Warren South, Nepean, Niddrie, Northcote, Oakliegh, Ovens Valley, Pakenham, Pascoe Vale, Point Cook, Polwarth, Prahran, Preston, Richmond, Ringwood, Ripon, Rowville, Sandringham, Shepparton, South Barwon, South West Coast, St Albans, Sunbury, Sydenham, Tarneit, Thomastown, Warrandyte, Wendouree, Werribee, Williamstown, Yan Yean |
| Preferences: | In various orders, the first four preferences of the Greens are Reason, Legalise Cannabis, Animal Justice and Victorian Socialists. They are followed, always, by Transport Matters and the ALP. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 (VIC) — 2014 (VIC) — 2013 — 2010> |
Summary
| Website: | viclabor.com.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — Instagram — YouTube |
| Previous Names: | none |
| Slogans: | Delivering for all Victorians |
| Themes: | |
| Electorates: | Upper House: All Lower House: All |
| Preferences: | The ALP has preferenced Reason, Animal Justice or Legalise Cannabis first, and then there’s a bit of a shuffle going on, with those three parties, the Greens, Transport Matters, Victorian Socialists, Shooters Fishers and Farmers, and Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party all in the mix, and no consistency between regions, so check your HTV card carefully before voting above the line. You’ll know you’ve reached the end of these musical chairs when you hit the Liberal Democrats. The parties after that are listed in the same order every time, with Sack Dan Andrews, the UAP and One Nation bringing up the rear. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 — 2014 — 2013 |
Summary
| Website: | www.victoriansocialists.org.au |
| Social Media: | |
| Previous Names: | none |
| Slogans: | For real change Vote Socialist |
| Themes: | …for real change vote Socialist |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victoria Region, North-Eastern Metropolitan Region, Northern Metropolitan Region, South-Eastern Metropolitan Region, Southern Metropolitan Region, Western Metropolitan Region, Western Victoria Region Lower House: Broadmeadows, Brunswick, Essendon, Footscray, Greenvale, Kalkallo, Kororoit, Laverton, Melbourne, Niddrie, Northcote, Pascoe Vale, Point Cook, Preston, Richmond, St Albans, Sunbury, Sydenham, Tarneit, Thomastown, Werribee, Williamstown |
| Preferences: | Like pretty much everyone else, the Vic Socialists are mixing it up from region to region. But their top four preferences always go to some combination of Animal Justice, Legalise Cannibis, Reason and the Greens, inevitably followed by the ALP and Transport Matters in that order. The rest of their ticket is fairly unsurprising, although the DLP ranks higher than you might expect, and CAP is always near the bottom, although ahead of UAP, One Nation and Freedom. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 (VIC) |
Summary
| Website: | nationals.org.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — Instagram — YouTube |
| Previous Names: | Australian Country Party, National Country Party |
| Slogans: | The Nationals for Regional Victoria |
| Themes: | We’re the less popular, less cool friend of the Liberals |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victoria, Northern Victoria, Western Victoria Lower House: Bass, Euroa, Gippsland East, Gippsland South, Lowan, Mildura, Morwell, Murray Plains, Narracan, Ovens Valley, Shepparton |
| Preferences: | It’s a right-wing roll call in most places, although a very jumbled one – you could be forgiven for thinking that it was a Druery special, but Transport Matters would be further up if that were the case (while Angry Victorians and Companions & Pets would be further down). So the top half of the ticket (or tickets, in South Eastern Metro, where for some reason the Coalition has two), is a roll call of Freedom, the Shooters Fishers & Farmers, Angry Victorians, Sustainable Australia, Family First, the DLP, One Nation, United Australia, Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party, Liberal Democrats and Sack Dan Andrews. Under them, in the same order every time, are the New Democrats, Health Australia, Transport Matters, Animal Justice, Legalise Cannabis, Reason, Greens, Victorian Socialists and last of all the ALP. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 (VIC) — 2014 (VIC) — 2013 — 2010 |
Summary
| Website: | www.sustainableaustralia.org.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — YouTube — Instagram |
| Previous Names: | Sustainable Population Party, before that the Stable Population Party |
| Slogans: | Redefining Growth |
| Themes: | Protect our environment. Stop over-development. Stop corruption. |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victorian, North Eastern Metropolitan, Northern Metropolitan, Northern Victorian, South Eastern Metropolitan, Southern Metropolitan, Western Metropolitan, Western Victorian Lower House: none |
| Preferences: | Sustainable Australia is yet another Druery special. They’ve ranked their fellow alliance members together in various orders in the different regions, and given a big thumbs down to everyone else. Labor is the highest preferenced major party on their list, so that’s likely where their preferences will land. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 — 2013 |
Summary
| Website: | vicshootersfishersandfarmers.org.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — Instagram — YouTube |
| Slogans: | It’s Your Powerful Voice Protecting your freedoms, our farmers and the future of outdoor sports |
| Themes: | Victoria? Where’s that? |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victorian, North Eastern Metropolitan, Northern Metropolitan, Northern Victorian, South Eastern Metropolitan, Southern Metropolitan, Western Metropolitan, Western Victorian Lower House: Gippsland East, Melton, Morwell, Narre Warren North, Ripon, Yan Yean |
| Preferences: | The SFF’s preferences are interesting. They’re a standard Druery mix for the part, with all the usual suspects, but the one major exception to this is the Companions and Pets Party, who are always third preference no matter what. I guess that make sense, the two pro-hunting parties sticking together. After the Druery alliance has finished playing musical chairs, the ticket rounds out in the same order every time: Independents, if any, followed by Freedom, Legalise Cannabis, Reason, the ALP, the Coalition, Vic Socialists, the Greens, and unsurprisingly, Animal Justice at the very bottom. |
| Previous Reviews: | Official Site Commentaries: 2022 — 2019 — 2018 (VIC) — 2014 (VIC) — 2013 — 2010 |
Summary
| Website: | www.ldp.org.au |
| Social Media: | Facebook — Twitter — YouTube |
| Previous Names: | none, but sometimes referred to as The Liberal Democratic Party |
| Slogans: | Getting elected to get out of your way. |
| Themes: | Get the government out of your business |
| Electorates: | Upper House: Eastern Victorian, North Eastern Metropolitan, Northern Metropolitan, Northern Victorian, South Eastern Metropolitan, Southern Metropolitan, Western Metropolitan, Western Victorian Lower House: Caulfield, Frankston, Hawthorn, Lara, Narre Warren North, Narre Warren South, Ovens Valley |
| Preferences: | The Liberal Democrats were a part of Glenn Druery’s alliance, and it shows in their preferences, which are a jumble of other alliance members – and the Companions and Pets Party, although not always. The only real consistency appears in the lower reaches of the tickets, where Vic Socialists, the Greens, Reason, the ALP and the Coalition are always last. If for some reason you feel that you absolutely must vote for this party, please vote below the line. |
| Previous Reviews: | 2022 — 2019 — 2018 (VIC) — 2014 (VIC) — 2013 — 2010 |
