With an Australian Election called today, I’m already weary of the election commentary that Albanese and Dutton are “locked in a battle to be Australia’s next Prime Minister”.
Thats… not how it works. That’s not how any of this works.
In Australia, we don’t vote for a Prime Minister. That’s not the point of the exercise.
They, and others, lead parties that have policies. We vote for a local representative – a person and a party that may carry certain policies into government.
Unlike the US and the UK, if they don’t get 50% of the vote we look at second choices, or third, or more, until we find someone who most people can trust to reflect their voice in Canberra, even if they’re not their first choice.
When we count up these folks, it’s the party with the greatest numbers, or the best negotiating skills to join forces with another mob, which forms government. The leader of the majority party is the prime minister.
It’s a sensible, solid, Responsible system.
(To see this spelled out with colour and movement – see the excellent You Can’t ‘Waste’ Your Vote! – Patrick Alexander’s Personal Internet)
For some unfiltered perspective on what your local member has been telling Canberra on your behalf, visit theyvoteforyou.org.au at least once this election cycle. See if your previous decision was a good one, and help it inform your next one.
Also See: OpenAustralia.org: Are your Representatives and Senators working for you in Australia’s Parliament?
And if you absolutely HAVE to treat this as a presidential election, here you can compare the voting records of, say, these two guys.
Curious to note the 19 times they were in agreement.
* OK, technically, you would be able to vote for them in two edge-cases:
1. if you’re a voter in the Grayndler or Dickson electorates. Even then, you’re just voting for them to represent you and your neighbours, not the whole country.
2. if you’re a party member you get to say who leads your party. Even then, they need to win their seat, and your party needs to be in the majority for them to become PM.
BONWAG 