Australian Democrats
Encyclopedia
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party
espousing a socially liberal
ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party
and the New LM
, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp
, as a high profile leader. The party's 30-year representation in the Parliament of Australia
ended on 30 June 2008, after the loss of its four remaining Senate seats; two of the senators had retired from politics and the other two were defeated at the 2007 election, in which the party polled only 1.29% of the national Senate vote.
The party is based on the principles of honesty, tolerance, compassion and direct democracy
through postal ballots of all members, so that "there should be no hierarchical structure ... by which a carefully engineered elite could make decisions for the members." From the outset, members' participation was fiercely protected in national and divisional constitutions prescribing internal elections, regular meeting protocols, annual conferences—and monthly journals for open discussion and balloting. Dispute resolution procedures were established, with final recourse to a party ombudsman
and membership ballot.
Policies determined by the unique participatory method promoted environmental awareness and sustainability
, opposition to the primacy of economic rationalism
(Australian neoliberalism
), preventative approaches to human health and welfare, animal rights, rejection of nuclear technology and weapons.
The Australian Democrats were the first representatives of green politics
at the federal level in Australia. They played a key role in the cause célèbre of the Franklin River Dam.
The party's centrist role makes it subject to criticism from both the right and left of the political spectrum. In particular, Chipp's former conservative
affiliation was frequently recalled by opponents on the left.Such as the then Socialist Workers' Party
and early green-left parties such as the United Tasmania Group
. This problem was to torment later leaders and strategists who, by 1991, were proclaiming "the electoral objective" as a higher priority than the rigorous participatory democracy espoused by the party's founders.The first substantive reason given by rebellious senators for deposing leader Janet Powell
in 1991 was her alleged failure to develop a media profile which would attract more electoral support. The first conclusive constitutional abandonment of founding principles was probably the July 1993, decision of the party's national executive to terminate monthly publication of the members' National Journal and to replace it with less frequent publication of glossy promotional material.
Over three decades, the Australian Democrats achieved representation in the legislatures of the ACT, South Australia, New South Wales, Western Australia and Tasmania as well as Senate
seats in all six states. However, at the 2004 and 2007 elections, all seven of its Senate seats were lost.
In 2009, the party attempted to reconstruct by reducing membership fees. However, at the March 2010 election held in South Australia (the party's registered home state), the Australian Democrats attracted less than one percent of the Upper House vote.
On the evening of 29 April 1977, Don Chipp addressed an overflowing Perth Town Hall meeting which unanimously passed a resolution to form a Centre-Line Party, which Chipp was invited to lead—but he firmly declined to reverse his avowed decision to quit politics, having resigned from the Liberal Party and been offered a lucrative position as a radio public affairs commentator. The Centre-Line Party was the provisional title of the Australian Democrats party. The occasion was a meeting at the Perth Town Hall
to which Don Chipp
had been invited in the hope that he would accept the position of leader of the new party, which would be an amalgamation of the Australia Party
and the New Liberal Movement
. On that occasion, Chipp declined to commit himself but did so at a corresponding public meeting in Melbourne on 9 May, 1977. Chipp received a standing ovation from over 3,000 people, including former Prime Minister John Gorton
, and decided to commit himself to leading the new party which was already being constructed by a national steering committee. The new party was eventually renamed the Australian Democrats
by a ballot of its membership. "Fifty-six suggestions produced by members were listed on the ballot paper, including Uniting Australia Party, Australian Centre Line Party, Dinkum Democrats, Practical Idealists of Australia and People for Sanity Party!! After the ballot, the suggestion of the Steering Committee, 'Australian Democrats', was overwhelmingly accepted." The name "Australian Democrats" was already in informal currency before this decision.
The first Australian Democrats (AD) federal parliamentarian was Senator Janine Haines
who filled Steele Hall's
casual Senate vacancy for South Australia in 1977. Surprisingly, she was not a candidate when the party contested the 1977 federal elections
after Don Chipp had agreed to be leader and figurehead. Members and candidates were not lacking in electoral experience, since the Australia Party had been contesting all federal elections since 1969
and the Liberal Movement, in 1974
and 1975
. The party's broad aim was to achieve a balance of power
in one or more parliaments and to exercise it responsibly in line with policies determined by membership.
The grassroot support attracted by Chipp's leadership was measurable at the party's first electoral test at the 1977 federal election
on 10 December, when 9.38 per cent of the total Lower House vote was polled and 11.13 per cent of the Senate vote. At that time, with five Senate seats being contested in each state, the required quota
was a daunting 16.66 per cent. However, the first 6-year-term seats were won by Don Chipp (Vic) and Colin Mason
(NSW).
The Australian Democrats' first national conference, on 16–17 February 1980, was opened by the distinguished nuclear physicist and former governor of South Australia, Sir Mark Oliphant
, who said:
At the October 1980 election
, the Democrats polled 9.25 per cent of the Senate vote, electing Janine Haines
(SA) and two new senators Michael Macklin
(Qld) and John Siddons
(Vic), bringing the party's strength to five Senate seats from 1 July 1981 .
A South Australian by-election in the state seat of Mitcham
(now Waite
) in 1982 saw Heather Southcott
retain the seat for the Democrats from Robin Millhouse
since 1955 (Democrat since 1977), however it was lost later that year at the 1982 state election
. Mitcham was the only single-member lower house seat anywhere in Australia to be won by the Democrats.
election by Prime Minister, Bob Hawke
. This reduced the quota necessary to win a seat to 7.7%. In NSW (Paul McLean), Victoria (Janet Powell) and South Australia (Janine Haines), 6 year terms were won. In South Australia, a second senator (John Coulter) was elected to 3 year term, and short terms were also won Michael Macklin in Queensland and Jean Jenkins in Western Australia.
1990 saw the courageous voluntary departure from the Senate of Janine Haines
(a step with which not all Democrats agreed) and the narrow failure of her strategic goal of winning the House of Representatives known as the seat of Kingston
.
Her casual vacancy was filled by Meg Lees
several months before the arrival of Cheryl Kernot
, elected to replace the retiring deputy leader Michael Macklin
. The ambitious Kernot immediately contested the Senate leadership. Being unemployed at the time, she requested and obtained party funds to pay for her travel to address members in all seven divisions. In the event, Victorian Janet Powell
was elected as leader and John Coulter was chosen as deputy leader.
Despite the loss of Haines and the WA Senate seat (through an inconsistent national preference agreement with the ALP), the 1990 federal election heralded something of a rebirth for the party, with a dramatic rise in primary vote. This was at the same time as an economic recession
was building, and events such as the Gulf War
in Kuwait were beginning to shepherd issues of globalisation and transnational trade on to national government agendas.
Virtually alone on the Australian political landscape, Janet Powell consistently attacked both the government and opposition which had closed ranks in support of the Gulf War. Whereas the House of Representatives was thus able to avoid any debate about the war and Australia's participation,The sole independent member in the House, Ted Mack
, was unable to launch his critical motion for lack of a seconder. the Democrats took full advantage of the opportunity to move for a debate in the Senate.
Possibly because of the party's opposition to the Gulf War, there was mass-media antipathy and negative publicity which some construed as poor performance by Janet Powell. She was criticised for the party's standing appearing stalled at about 10%, which in light of future performance can now be seen as highly creditable. Before 12 months of her leadership had passed, the South Australian and Queensland divisions were circulating the party's first-ever petition to criticise and oust the parliamentary leader. The explicit grounds related to Powell's alleged responsibility for poor AD ratings in Gallup and other media surveys of potential voting support. When this charge was deemed insufficient, interested party officers and senators reinforced it with negative media 'leaks'
concerning her openly established relationship with Sid Spindler
and exposure of administrative failings resulting in excessive overtime to a staff member. With National Executive blessing, the party room pre-empted the ballot by replacing the leader with deputy John Coulter. In the process, severe internal divisions were generated. One major collateral casualty was the party whip Paul McLean
who resigned and quit the Senate in disgust at what he perceived as in-fighting between close friends. The casual NSW vacancy created by his resignation was filled by Karin Sowada
. Powell duly left the party, along with many leading figures of the Victorian branch of the party, and unsuccessfully stood as an Independent candidate when her term expired. In later years, she campaigned for the Australian Greens.
and social justice
. The party aimed to combine liberal social policies with centrist, particularly neo-Keynesian economics
and a progressive environmental platform.
The original agenda included interventionist economic
policies, commitment to environmental
causes, support for reconciliation with Australia's indigenous population
through such mechanisms as formal treaties, pacifist
approaches to international relations, open government, constitutional reform, progressive approaches to social issues such as sexuality and drugs, and strong support for human rights
and civil liberties. Its membership largely comprised tertiary-educated
and middle-class
constituents. The party also appealed to voters opposed to untrammelled government power and wishing to have alternative views aired in parliaments and media.
The party has a platform of participatory democracy
, with policies supporting proportional representation
and citizen-initiated referenda. Many important internal issues (such as electoral preselection and leadership) are decided by direct postal ballot of the membership. Although policies are theoretically set in a similar fashion, Australian Democrats parliamentarians generally had extensive freedom in interpreting them.
However, by 1980, the Australian Democrats had employed the postal-ballot method at both national at state levels to develop an extensive body of written policy covering not only the political agendas of the day but also innovative and far-sighted policies for environmental and economic sustainability, water and energy conservation, e.g., through development of alternative energy sources, expanded public transport, etc. To the community's growing concerns about human rights, the Australian Democrats added finely detailed policies on animal welfare and species preservation. The material is available in election manifestos and copies of the party's journals, obtainable in major public libraries.
In 2009, as part of the Rebuild process, the party announced a comprehensive review of all policies.
During the Hawke
and Keating
Labor
Governments (1983–96), the Australian Democrats held a theoretical balance of power in the Senate: the numbers were such that they could team with Labor to pass legislation, or team with the Coalition to block legislation on occasions when the Coalition decided to oppose a government bill.
Their power was weakened in 1996 after the Howard Government
was elected, and a Labor senator, Mal Colston
, resigned from the Labor party. This meant that the Australian Democrats now shared the parliamentary balance of power with two Independent senators. As a result, the Coalition government could often bypass the Australian Democrats, and pass legislation by negotiating with Colston and Brian Harradine
. Following the 1998 election the Australian Democrats again held the balance of power, until the Coalition gained a Senate majority at the 2004 election.
The Hawke and Keating governments pursued economic policies that drew on economic rationalist
and neo-liberal
thought, and the Australian Democrats positioned themselves to the left of the ALP government, and thus at the left end of mainstream Australian politics. Their appeal (and focus on issues beyond the usual "economic" ones that monopolised major party attention) was always greatest amongst tertiary-educated voters. However, the party's progressive politics also remained attractive to a sizeable section of mainly middle class ("wet") Liberal
supporters – often female, and often disparagingly described on the right of the Liberal Party as "Soccer Mums" or "Doctor's Wives" – who were turned off by the Liberal party's social conservatism and "Reagonomic/Thatcherite" economic policies. Many Liberals saw their support of the Australian Democrats in the Senate as having "an each way bet", ameliorating the effect of their support for the Liberals in the House of Representatives – an attitude positively fostered, not unsurprisingly, by Democrat politicians and campaigners.
Cheryl Kernot became leader in 1993. She had strong media appeal, which increased media and public awareness of herself and the party. She was known to have interests in industrial relations and was able to cultivate solid relationships with Labor government frontbenchers, which also added to her credibility in the press gallery.
Lack of clear direction other than, possibly, senators' common ambition to play a more productive role in government manifested itself in tensions over Cheryl Kernot's policy on industrial relations (see the Workplace Relations Act 1996
). Under Kernot, after negotiations and some compromises from the government, the Australian Democrats voted for the Howard Government's right-leaning industrial relations legislation which decreased union power and allowed a larger role for individual employer-employee contracts.
Kernot, however, remained broadly opposed to the Liberal government. This, together with her personal ambition for a role in government, led her to defect to the ALP in 1997. In the 1998 federal election, the Democrats' candidate John Schumann
came within 3 per cent of taking Liberal Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
's seat of Mayo
in the Adelaide Hills under Australia's preferential voting
system.
Internal conflict and leadership tensions from 2000 to 2002, blamed on the party's support for the Government's Goods and Services Tax
(GST), was damaging to the Democrats.
Opposed by the Labor Party, the Australian Greens
and independent Senator Brian Harradine
, the GST required Democrat support to pass. In an election fought on tax, the Democrats publicly stated that they liked neither the Liberal (GST) tax package or the Labor package, but pledged to work with whichever party was elected to make their tax package better. They campaigned with the slogan "No GST on food".
In 1999, after negotiations with Prime Minister Howard
, Meg Lees
and Andrew Murray
agreed to support the A New Tax System (ANTS) legislation with exemptions from GST for most food and some medicines, as well as many environmental and social concessions. Five Australian Democrats senators voted in favour.
However, two dissident senators on the party's left Natasha Stott Despoja
and Andrew Bartlett
voted against the GST.
In 2001, a leadership spill saw Meg Lees
replaced as leader by Natasha Stott Despoja
after a very public and bitter leadership battle. Despite criticism of Stott Despoja's youth and lack of experience, the 2001 election saw the Democrats receive similar media coverage to the previous election. Despite the internal divisions, the Australian Democrats' election result in 2001 was quite good. However, it was not enough to prevent the loss of Vicki Bourne
's Senate seat in NSW.
Ongoing tensions between Stott Despoja and Lees led to Stott Despoja standing down from the leadership. It led to a protracted leadership battle in 2002, which eventually led to the election of Senator Andrew Bartlett as leader. However, the tension led to Meg Lees
leaving the party in 2002, becoming an independent and forming the Australian Progressive Alliance
.
On 6 December 2003, Andrew Bartlett stepped aside temporarily as leader of the party, after an incident in which he assaulted Liberal
Senator Jeannie Ferris
on the floor of Parliament
while intoxicated. The party issued a statement stating that Deputy Leader Lyn Allison
would serve as the Acting Leader of the party. Bartlett apologised to the Democrats, Jeannie Ferris and the Australian public for his behaviour and assured all concerned that it would never happen again. On 29 January 2004, after seeking medical treatment, Bartlett returned to the Australian Democrats leadership, vowing to abstain from alcohol.
Support for the Australian Democrats fell significantly at the 2004 federal election in which they achieved only 1.24 per cent of the national vote. Nowhere was this more noticeable than in their key support base of suburban Adelaide
in South Australia, where they received between 7 and 31 per cent of the Lower House vote in 2001, and between 1 and 4 per cent in 2004. Three incumbent senators were defeated—Aden Ridgeway
(NSW), Brian Greig
(WA) and John Cherry (Qld). Following the loss, the customary post-election leadership ballot installed Lyn Allison as leader and Andrew Bartlett as her deputy.
From 1 July 2005 the Australian Democrats lost official parliamentary party status, being represented by only four senators while the governing Liberal-National Coalition gained a majority and potential control of the Senate—the first time this advantage had been enjoyed by any government since 1980.
On 18 March 2006, at the 2006 South Australian state election
, the Australian Democrats were reduced to 1.7 per cent of the Legislative Council (upper house) vote. Their sole councillor up for re-election, Kate Reynolds
, was defeated.
After the election, South Australian senator Natasha Stott Despoja
denied rumours that she was considering quitting the party.
In early July, Richard Pascoe, national and South Australian party president, resigned, citing slumping opinion polls and the poor result in the 2006 South Australian election as well as South Australian parliamentary leader Sandra Kanck
's comments regarding the drug MDMA which he saw as damaging to the party.
On 5 July 2006, Australian Democrats senator for Western Australia Andrew Murray
announced his intention not to contest the 2007 federal election, citing frustration arising from the Howard Government's control of both houses and his unwillingness to serve another six-year term. His term ended on 30 June 2008.
On 28 August 2006, the founder of the Australian Democrats, Don Chipp
, died. Former prime minister Bob Hawke said: "... there is a coincidental timing almost between the passing of Don Chipp and what I think is the death throes of the Democrats. "
On 22 October 2006, Australian Democrats Senator Natasha Stott Despoja
announced her intention not to seek re-election at the 2007 federal election due to health concerns. Her term ended on 30 June 2008.
In November 2006, the Australian Democrats fared very poorly in the Victorian state election, receiving a Legislative Council vote tally of only 0.83%, less than half of the party's result in 2002 (1.79 per cent).
. The party fared poorly, gaining only 1.8 per cent of the Legislative Council vote. A higher vote was achieved in some of the Legislative Assembly seats selectively contested as compared to 2003. However, the statewide vote share fell because the party was unable to field as many candidates as in 2003.
In the Victorian state by-election in Albert Park District the Australian Democrats stood candidate Paul Kavanagh, who polled a respectable 5.75 per cent of the primary vote, despite a large number of candidates, and all media attention focusing on the battle between Labor and Greens candidates.
On 13 September 2007, the ACT Democrats (Australian Capital Territory Division of the party) was deregistered by the ACT Electoral Commissioner, being unable to demonstrate a minimum membership of 100 electors.
As was widely expected, the Democrats had no success at the 2007 federal election. Two incumbent senators, Lyn Allison (Victoria) and Andrew Bartlett (Queensland), were defeated, their seats both reverting to major parties. Their two remaining colleagues, Andrew Murray (WA) and Natasha Stott Despoja (SA), did not run for new terms. All four senators' terms expired on 30 June 2008—leaving the Australian Democrats with no federal representation for the first time since its founding in 1977. An ABC report noted that "on the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) website the party is now referred to just as 'other'".
in South Australia. At the Australian Capital Territory general election, 2008
, the party's ungrouped candidates obtained 0.3% of the vote for Ginninderra (Darren Churchill) and 0.2% in Molonglo (Greg Tannahill).
In July 2009, the party's sole remaining parliamentarian, David Winderlich
, announced he would leave the party and sit as an independent unless the South Australian Democrats could recruit 1,000 new members by November 2009. When this clearly could not eventuate, he resigned from the party on 7 October 2009, continued to sit as an independent and was defeated at the 2010 election.
David Collyer contested the 2009 Higgins by-election
and received 2.3 percent of the vote.
At the 2010 federal election, Democrat candidates again failed to secure any seats in the Senate. They polled very poorly, achieving only 0.5%–0.75% of vote in the states and 1.6% of the vote in the ACT.
of the capital cities (especially Adelaide). Therefore, they never managed to win a House of Representatives
seat. During the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s they typically held one or two Senate
seats in each state, as well as having some representatives in state parliaments and local councils.
Following the internal conflict over GST
(1998–2001) and resultant leadership changes, a dramatic decline occurred in the Democrats' membership and voting support in all states. Simultaneously, an increase was recorded in support for the Australian Greens
who, by 2004, were supplanting the Democrats as a substantial third party
. The trend was noted that year by political scientists Dean Jaensch et al. Elsewhere, Jaensch later suggested it was possible the Democrats could make a political comeback in the federal arena.
Following Tony Abbott
's displacement of Malcolm Turnbull
as federal leader of the Liberal Party in 2009, the Democrats sought to attract the support of "those Liberals who no longer feel they can support their party.
Of the party's nine elected federal parliamentary leaders, six were women. Aboriginal senator Aden Ridgeway
was deputy leader under Natasha Stott Despoja.
Federal parliamentary leaders of the Australian Democrats.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
espousing a socially liberal
Social liberalism
Social liberalism is the belief that liberalism should include social justice. It differs from classical liberalism in that it believes the legitimate role of the state includes addressing economic and social issues such as unemployment, health care, and education while simultaneously expanding...
ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party
Australia Party
The Australia Party was the name of a minor political party in Australia ....
and the New LM
New LM
The New Liberal Movement was a South Australian political party that had parliamentary representation during the mid-1970s.Formed by Robin Millhouse on 6 May 1976 following the dissolution of the Liberal Movement, the New LM sought to be the true liberal party in South Australia, arguing that the...
, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp
Don Chipp
Donald Leslie Chipp, AO was an Australian politician, and the inaugural leader of the Australian Democrats.-Early life:...
, as a high profile leader. The party's 30-year representation in the Parliament of Australia
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, largely modelled in the Westminster tradition, but with some influences from the United States Congress...
ended on 30 June 2008, after the loss of its four remaining Senate seats; two of the senators had retired from politics and the other two were defeated at the 2007 election, in which the party polled only 1.29% of the national Senate vote.
The party is based on the principles of honesty, tolerance, compassion and direct democracy
Direct democracy
Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Direct democracy is classically termed "pure democracy"...
through postal ballots of all members, so that "there should be no hierarchical structure ... by which a carefully engineered elite could make decisions for the members." From the outset, members' participation was fiercely protected in national and divisional constitutions prescribing internal elections, regular meeting protocols, annual conferences—and monthly journals for open discussion and balloting. Dispute resolution procedures were established, with final recourse to a party ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
and membership ballot.
Policies determined by the unique participatory method promoted environmental awareness and sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
, opposition to the primacy of economic rationalism
Economic rationalism
Economic rationalism is an Australian term in discussion of microeconomic policy, applicable to the economic policy of many governments around the world, in particular during the 1980s and 1990s....
(Australian neoliberalism
Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is a market-driven approach to economic and social policy based on neoclassical theories of economics that emphasizes the efficiency of private enterprise, liberalized trade and relatively open markets, and therefore seeks to maximize the role of the private sector in determining the...
), preventative approaches to human health and welfare, animal rights, rejection of nuclear technology and weapons.
The Australian Democrats were the first representatives of green politics
Green politics
Green politics is a political ideology that aims for the creation of an ecologically sustainable society rooted in environmentalism, social liberalism, and grassroots democracy...
at the federal level in Australia. They played a key role in the cause célèbre of the Franklin River Dam.
The party's centrist role makes it subject to criticism from both the right and left of the political spectrum. In particular, Chipp's former conservative
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
affiliation was frequently recalled by opponents on the left.Such as the then Socialist Workers' Party
Democratic Socialist Perspective
The Democratic Socialist Perspective was an Australian Marxist political group, which operated as the largest component of a broad-left socialist formation, the Socialist Alliance...
and early green-left parties such as the United Tasmania Group
United Tasmania Group
The United Tasmania Group is generally acknowledged as the world's first Green party. The party was formed on 23 March 1972, during a meeting of the Lake Pedder Action Group at the Hobart town hall in order to field political candidates in the April 1972 state election. They received 3.9% of the...
. This problem was to torment later leaders and strategists who, by 1991, were proclaiming "the electoral objective" as a higher priority than the rigorous participatory democracy espoused by the party's founders.The first substantive reason given by rebellious senators for deposing leader Janet Powell
Janet Powell
Janet Frances Powell in Nhill, Victoria, is an Australian politician.She was appointed a senator for Victoria, representing the Australian Democrats, upon the resignation of the party's founder, Don Chipp, in 1986. She was elected the following year. She became the third leader of the party, from...
in 1991 was her alleged failure to develop a media profile which would attract more electoral support. The first conclusive constitutional abandonment of founding principles was probably the July 1993, decision of the party's national executive to terminate monthly publication of the members' National Journal and to replace it with less frequent publication of glossy promotional material.
Over three decades, the Australian Democrats achieved representation in the legislatures of the ACT, South Australia, New South Wales, Western Australia and Tasmania as well as Senate
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
seats in all six states. However, at the 2004 and 2007 elections, all seven of its Senate seats were lost.
In 2009, the party attempted to reconstruct by reducing membership fees. However, at the March 2010 election held in South Australia (the party's registered home state), the Australian Democrats attracted less than one percent of the Upper House vote.
1977–79
Perth Town Hall
The Perth Town Hall, situated on the corner of Hay and Barrack streets, is the only convict-built town hall in Australia.Designed by Richard Roach Jewell and James Manning in the Victorian Free Gothic style, the hall was built by convicts and free men between 1868 and 1870...
to which Don Chipp
Don Chipp
Donald Leslie Chipp, AO was an Australian politician, and the inaugural leader of the Australian Democrats.-Early life:...
had been invited in the hope that he would accept the position of leader of the new party, which would be an amalgamation of the Australia Party
Australia Party
The Australia Party was the name of a minor political party in Australia ....
and the New Liberal Movement
New LM
The New Liberal Movement was a South Australian political party that had parliamentary representation during the mid-1970s.Formed by Robin Millhouse on 6 May 1976 following the dissolution of the Liberal Movement, the New LM sought to be the true liberal party in South Australia, arguing that the...
. On that occasion, Chipp declined to commit himself but did so at a corresponding public meeting in Melbourne on 9 May, 1977. Chipp received a standing ovation from over 3,000 people, including former Prime Minister John Gorton
John Gorton
Sir John Grey Gorton, GCMG, AC, CH , Australian politician, was the 19th Prime Minister of Australia.-Early life:...
, and decided to commit himself to leading the new party which was already being constructed by a national steering committee. The new party was eventually renamed the Australian Democrats
Australian Democrats
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
by a ballot of its membership. "Fifty-six suggestions produced by members were listed on the ballot paper, including Uniting Australia Party, Australian Centre Line Party, Dinkum Democrats, Practical Idealists of Australia and People for Sanity Party!! After the ballot, the suggestion of the Steering Committee, 'Australian Democrats', was overwhelmingly accepted." The name "Australian Democrats" was already in informal currency before this decision.
The first Australian Democrats (AD) federal parliamentarian was Senator Janine Haines
Janine Haines
Janine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation...
who filled Steele Hall's
Steele Hall
Raymond Steele Hall was the 36th Premier of South Australia 1968-70, a senator for South Australia 1974-77, and federal member for the Division of Boothby 1981-96.-Biography:...
casual Senate vacancy for South Australia in 1977. Surprisingly, she was not a candidate when the party contested the 1977 federal elections
Australian federal election, 1977
Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1977. All 124 seats in the House of Representatives, and 34 of the 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election....
after Don Chipp had agreed to be leader and figurehead. Members and candidates were not lacking in electoral experience, since the Australia Party had been contesting all federal elections since 1969
Australian federal election, 1969
Federal elections were held in Australia on 25 October 1969. All 125 seats in the House of Representatives were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Prime Minister of Australia John Gorton with coalition partner the Country Party led by John McEwen defeated the Australian...
and the Liberal Movement, in 1974
Australian federal election, 1974
Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 May 1974. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 60 seats in the Senate were up for election, due to a double dissolution...
and 1975
Australian federal election, 1975
Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1975. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for election following a double dissolution of both Houses....
. The party's broad aim was to achieve a balance of power
Balance of power (parliament)
In parliamentary politics, the term balance of power sometimes describes the pragmatic mechanism exercised by a minor political party or other grouping whose guaranteed support may enable an otherwise minority government to obtain and hold office...
in one or more parliaments and to exercise it responsibly in line with policies determined by membership.
The grassroot support attracted by Chipp's leadership was measurable at the party's first electoral test at the 1977 federal election
Australian federal election, 1977
Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1977. All 124 seats in the House of Representatives, and 34 of the 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election....
on 10 December, when 9.38 per cent of the total Lower House vote was polled and 11.13 per cent of the Senate vote. At that time, with five Senate seats being contested in each state, the required quota
Droop Quota
The Droop quota is the quota most commonly used in elections held under the Single Transferable Vote system. It is also sometimes used in elections held under the largest remainder method of party-list proportional representation . In an STV election the quota is the minimum number of votes a...
was a daunting 16.66 per cent. However, the first 6-year-term seats were won by Don Chipp (Vic) and Colin Mason
Colin Mason
Colin Victor James Mason is a New Zealand-born Australian journalist, author and former politician.Mason worked for 14 years as the first foreign correspondent of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and became deeply involved in Asian affairs...
(NSW).
1980–82
At a Melbourne media conference in 1980, Chipp described his party's aim as to "keep the bastards honest"--the "bastards" being the major parties and/or politicians in general. This became a long-lived slogan for the Democrats.The Australian Democrats' first national conference, on 16–17 February 1980, was opened by the distinguished nuclear physicist and former governor of South Australia, Sir Mark Oliphant
Mark Oliphant
Sir Marcus 'Mark' Laurence Elwin Oliphant, AC, KBE, FRS was an Australian physicist and humanitarian who played a fundamental role in the first experimental demonstration of nuclear fusion and also the development of the atomic bomb.During his retirement, Oliphant was appointed as the Governor of...
, who said:
I was privileged to be in the chair at the public meeting in Melbourne when [Don Chipp] announced formation of a new party, dedicated to preserve what freedoms we still retain, and to increase them. A party in which dictatorship from the top was replaced by consensus. A party not ordered about by big business and the rich, or by union bosses. A party where a man could retain freedom of conscience and not thereby be faced with expulsion. A party to which the intelligent individual could belong without having to subscribe to a dogmatic creed. In other words, a democratic party.
At the October 1980 election
Australian federal election, 1980
Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 October 1980. All 125 seats in the House of Representatives, and 34 of the 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Malcolm Fraser with coalition partner the National Country Party led by Doug...
, the Democrats polled 9.25 per cent of the Senate vote, electing Janine Haines
Janine Haines
Janine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation...
(SA) and two new senators Michael Macklin
Michael Macklin
Michael John Macklin is a former Australian Franciscan friar, educator and fundraiser who was an Australian Democrats senator for Queensland,...
(Qld) and John Siddons
John Siddons
John Royston Siddons was an Australian politician. He was a businessman and the executive chairman of Siddons Industries Ltd. before entering politics. In 1980, he was elected to the Australian Senate as a Democrats senator for Victoria...
(Vic), bringing the party's strength to five Senate seats from 1 July 1981 .
A South Australian by-election in the state seat of Mitcham
Electoral district of Mitcham (South Australia)
Mitcham was an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia from 1938 to 1993. The district was based in the south-eastern suburbs of Adelaide....
(now Waite
Electoral district of Waite
Waite is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. Named after Peter Waite, a 19th entrepreneur and philanthropist in the current area of the electorate, it is a 30.6km² urban electorate in Adelaide's inner south-eastern suburbs, taking in the...
) in 1982 saw Heather Southcott
Heather Southcott
Heather Southcott was an Australian politician, representing the electoral district of Mitcham in the South Australian House of Assembly for the Australian Democrats....
retain the seat for the Democrats from Robin Millhouse
Robin Millhouse
Robin Rhodes Millhouse QC has been, at various times, the South Australian Attorney-General, the first Australian Democrats parliamentarian, and the Chief Justice of both Kiribati and Nauru....
since 1955 (Democrat since 1977), however it was lost later that year at the 1982 state election
South Australian state election, 1982
State elections were held in Australia on November 6, 1982. All 47 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Premier of South Australia David Tonkin was defeated by the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition...
. Mitcham was the only single-member lower house seat anywhere in Australia to be won by the Democrats.
1987–90
It had been expected that the Democrats would find it difficult to win seats at the next Senate election due in 1987. However, their task was assisted by the calling of a double dissolutionDouble dissolution
A double dissolution is a procedure permitted under the Australian Constitution to resolve deadlocks between the House of Representatives and the Senate....
election by Prime Minister, Bob Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
. This reduced the quota necessary to win a seat to 7.7%. In NSW (Paul McLean), Victoria (Janet Powell) and South Australia (Janine Haines), 6 year terms were won. In South Australia, a second senator (John Coulter) was elected to 3 year term, and short terms were also won Michael Macklin in Queensland and Jean Jenkins in Western Australia.
1990–91
- See 'Give a Damn: Vote Democrat 1' campaign commercial
1990 saw the courageous voluntary departure from the Senate of Janine Haines
Janine Haines
Janine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation...
(a step with which not all Democrats agreed) and the narrow failure of her strategic goal of winning the House of Representatives known as the seat of Kingston
Division of Kingston
The Division of Kingston is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia covering the far-south metropolitan area of Adelaide. The division was first proclaimed in 1949....
.
Her casual vacancy was filled by Meg Lees
Meg Lees
Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from...
several months before the arrival of Cheryl Kernot
Cheryl Kernot
Cheryl Kernot is an Australian politician, academic, and political activist. She was a member of the Australian Senate representing Queensland for the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 1997, and the fifth leader of the Australian Democrats from 1993 to 1997...
, elected to replace the retiring deputy leader Michael Macklin
Michael Macklin
Michael John Macklin is a former Australian Franciscan friar, educator and fundraiser who was an Australian Democrats senator for Queensland,...
. The ambitious Kernot immediately contested the Senate leadership. Being unemployed at the time, she requested and obtained party funds to pay for her travel to address members in all seven divisions. In the event, Victorian Janet Powell
Janet Powell
Janet Frances Powell in Nhill, Victoria, is an Australian politician.She was appointed a senator for Victoria, representing the Australian Democrats, upon the resignation of the party's founder, Don Chipp, in 1986. She was elected the following year. She became the third leader of the party, from...
was elected as leader and John Coulter was chosen as deputy leader.
Despite the loss of Haines and the WA Senate seat (through an inconsistent national preference agreement with the ALP), the 1990 federal election heralded something of a rebirth for the party, with a dramatic rise in primary vote. This was at the same time as an economic recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
was building, and events such as the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
in Kuwait were beginning to shepherd issues of globalisation and transnational trade on to national government agendas.
Election Results Senate – National
|
Virtually alone on the Australian political landscape, Janet Powell consistently attacked both the government and opposition which had closed ranks in support of the Gulf War. Whereas the House of Representatives was thus able to avoid any debate about the war and Australia's participation,The sole independent member in the House, Ted Mack
Ted Mack (politician)
Edward Carrington Mack is an Australian politician. He is the only person ever to have been elected and re-elected as an independent to local, state and federal government in Australia, and is often referred to as the "father of the independents".-Early life:Mack was born in the Sydney suburb of...
, was unable to launch his critical motion for lack of a seconder. the Democrats took full advantage of the opportunity to move for a debate in the Senate.
Possibly because of the party's opposition to the Gulf War, there was mass-media antipathy and negative publicity which some construed as poor performance by Janet Powell. She was criticised for the party's standing appearing stalled at about 10%, which in light of future performance can now be seen as highly creditable. Before 12 months of her leadership had passed, the South Australian and Queensland divisions were circulating the party's first-ever petition to criticise and oust the parliamentary leader. The explicit grounds related to Powell's alleged responsibility for poor AD ratings in Gallup and other media surveys of potential voting support. When this charge was deemed insufficient, interested party officers and senators reinforced it with negative media 'leaks'
News leak
A news leak is a disclosure of embargoed information in advance of its official release, or the unsanctioned release of confidential information.-Types of news leaks:...
concerning her openly established relationship with Sid Spindler
Sid Spindler
Siegfried Emil "Sid" Spindler was an Australian politician representing the Australian Democrats in the Australian Senate for one term from 1990 to 1996....
and exposure of administrative failings resulting in excessive overtime to a staff member. With National Executive blessing, the party room pre-empted the ballot by replacing the leader with deputy John Coulter. In the process, severe internal divisions were generated. One major collateral casualty was the party whip Paul McLean
Paul McLean (Australian politician)
Paul Alexander McLean is an Australian advocate of banking reform and former Australian Democrats senator for New South Wales ....
who resigned and quit the Senate in disgust at what he perceived as in-fighting between close friends. The casual NSW vacancy created by his resignation was filled by Karin Sowada
Karin Sowada
Karin Nicole Sowada is an Australian archaeologist and former politician. She served two years as an Australian Democrats senator for New South Wales between 1991 and 1993, filling the casual vacancy created by the resignation of Paul McLean...
. Powell duly left the party, along with many leading figures of the Victorian branch of the party, and unsuccessfully stood as an Independent candidate when her term expired. In later years, she campaigned for the Australian Greens.
Policy
The party's original support base consisted of voters alienated by perceived unproductive adversarial conflict between the two mainstream parties and an emerging new constituency of people with a desire to participate more effectively in government and to promote concerns for environmental protectionEnvironmental protection
Environmental protection is a practice of protecting the environment, on individual, organizational or governmental level, for the benefit of the natural environment and humans. Due to the pressures of population and our technology the biophysical environment is being degraded, sometimes permanently...
and social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
. The party aimed to combine liberal social policies with centrist, particularly neo-Keynesian economics
Neo-Keynesian Economics
Neo-Keynesian economics is a school of macroeconomic thought that was developed in the post-war period from the writings of John Maynard Keynes. A group of economists , attempted to interpret and formalize Keynes' writings, and to synthesize it with the neo-classical models of economics...
and a progressive environmental platform.
The original agenda included interventionist economic
Economic interventionism
Economic interventionism is an action taken by a government in a market economy or market-oriented mixed economy, beyond the basic regulation of fraud and enforcement of contracts, in an effort to affect its own economy...
policies, commitment to environmental
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
causes, support for reconciliation with Australia's indigenous population
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
through such mechanisms as formal treaties, pacifist
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
approaches to international relations, open government, constitutional reform, progressive approaches to social issues such as sexuality and drugs, and strong support for human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and civil liberties. Its membership largely comprised tertiary-educated
Tertiary education
Tertiary education, also referred to as third stage, third level, and post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of a school providing a secondary education, such as a high school, secondary school, university-preparatory school...
and middle-class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
constituents. The party also appealed to voters opposed to untrammelled government power and wishing to have alternative views aired in parliaments and media.
The party has a platform of participatory democracy
Participatory democracy
Participatory Democracy, also known as Deliberative Democracy, Direct Democracy and Real Democracy , is a process where political decisions are made directly by regular people...
, with policies supporting proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
and citizen-initiated referenda. Many important internal issues (such as electoral preselection and leadership) are decided by direct postal ballot of the membership. Although policies are theoretically set in a similar fashion, Australian Democrats parliamentarians generally had extensive freedom in interpreting them.
However, by 1980, the Australian Democrats had employed the postal-ballot method at both national at state levels to develop an extensive body of written policy covering not only the political agendas of the day but also innovative and far-sighted policies for environmental and economic sustainability, water and energy conservation, e.g., through development of alternative energy sources, expanded public transport, etc. To the community's growing concerns about human rights, the Australian Democrats added finely detailed policies on animal welfare and species preservation. The material is available in election manifestos and copies of the party's journals, obtainable in major public libraries.
In 2009, as part of the Rebuild process, the party announced a comprehensive review of all policies.
Electoral fortunes
The Australian Democrats' electoral fortunes have fluctuated throughout their history.During the Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
and Keating
Paul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
Labor
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
Governments (1983–96), the Australian Democrats held a theoretical balance of power in the Senate: the numbers were such that they could team with Labor to pass legislation, or team with the Coalition to block legislation on occasions when the Coalition decided to oppose a government bill.
Their power was weakened in 1996 after the Howard Government
Howard Government
The Howard Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard. It was made up of members of the Liberal–National Coalition, which won a majority of seats in the Australian House of Representatives at four successive elections. The Howard Government...
was elected, and a Labor senator, Mal Colston
Mal Colston
Malcolm Arthur "Mal" Colston , Australian politician, was a Senator in the Parliament of Australia representing the state of Queensland between 1975 and 1999...
, resigned from the Labor party. This meant that the Australian Democrats now shared the parliamentary balance of power with two Independent senators. As a result, the Coalition government could often bypass the Australian Democrats, and pass legislation by negotiating with Colston and Brian Harradine
Brian Harradine
Richard William Brian Harradine , Australian politician, was an independent member of the Australian Senate from 1975 to 2005, representing the state of Tasmania. He was the longest-serving independent federal politician in Australian history, and a Father of the Senate.He was born in Quorn, South...
. Following the 1998 election the Australian Democrats again held the balance of power, until the Coalition gained a Senate majority at the 2004 election.
The Hawke and Keating governments pursued economic policies that drew on economic rationalist
Economic rationalism
Economic rationalism is an Australian term in discussion of microeconomic policy, applicable to the economic policy of many governments around the world, in particular during the 1980s and 1990s....
and neo-liberal
Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is a market-driven approach to economic and social policy based on neoclassical theories of economics that emphasizes the efficiency of private enterprise, liberalized trade and relatively open markets, and therefore seeks to maximize the role of the private sector in determining the...
thought, and the Australian Democrats positioned themselves to the left of the ALP government, and thus at the left end of mainstream Australian politics. Their appeal (and focus on issues beyond the usual "economic" ones that monopolised major party attention) was always greatest amongst tertiary-educated voters. However, the party's progressive politics also remained attractive to a sizeable section of mainly middle class ("wet") Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
supporters – often female, and often disparagingly described on the right of the Liberal Party as "Soccer Mums" or "Doctor's Wives" – who were turned off by the Liberal party's social conservatism and "Reagonomic/Thatcherite" economic policies. Many Liberals saw their support of the Australian Democrats in the Senate as having "an each way bet", ameliorating the effect of their support for the Liberals in the House of Representatives – an attitude positively fostered, not unsurprisingly, by Democrat politicians and campaigners.
Cheryl Kernot became leader in 1993. She had strong media appeal, which increased media and public awareness of herself and the party. She was known to have interests in industrial relations and was able to cultivate solid relationships with Labor government frontbenchers, which also added to her credibility in the press gallery.
Lack of clear direction other than, possibly, senators' common ambition to play a more productive role in government manifested itself in tensions over Cheryl Kernot's policy on industrial relations (see the Workplace Relations Act 1996
Workplace Relations Act 1996
The Workplace Relations Act 1996 is an Australian law passed by the Howard Government after coming into power in 1996. It replaced the previous Labor Government's Industrial Relations Act 1988. It started operation on 1 January 1997 and provided for the continuation of the federal award system...
). Under Kernot, after negotiations and some compromises from the government, the Australian Democrats voted for the Howard Government's right-leaning industrial relations legislation which decreased union power and allowed a larger role for individual employer-employee contracts.
John Schumann
John Lewis Schumann is an Australian singer, songwriter and guitarist from Adelaide. He is best known as the lead singer for the folk group Redgum, with their chart-topping hit "I Was Only 19 ", a song exploring the psychological and medical side-effects of serving in the Australian forces during...
came within 3 per cent of taking Liberal Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was Foreign Minister of Australia from March 1996 to December 2007, the longest-serving in Australian history...
's seat of Mayo
Division of Mayo
The Division of Mayo is an Australian Electoral Division located in the hills, east of Adelaide, South Australia and currently includes the towns of Victor Harbor, Lobethal, Mount Barker, Strathalbyn, Woodside and Kingscote....
in the Adelaide Hills under Australia's preferential voting
Preferential voting
Preferential voting is a type of ballot structure used in several electoral systems in which voters rank candidates in order of relative preference. For example, the voter may select their first choice as '1', their second preference a '2', and so on...
system.
Internal conflict and leadership tensions from 2000 to 2002, blamed on the party's support for the Government's Goods and Services Tax
Goods and Services Tax (Australia)
The GST is a broad sales tax of 10% on most goods and services transactions in Australia. It is a value added tax, not a sales tax, in that it is refunded to all parties in the chain of production other than the final consumer....
(GST), was damaging to the Democrats.
Opposed by the Labor Party, the Australian Greens
Australian Greens
The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
and independent Senator Brian Harradine
Brian Harradine
Richard William Brian Harradine , Australian politician, was an independent member of the Australian Senate from 1975 to 2005, representing the state of Tasmania. He was the longest-serving independent federal politician in Australian history, and a Father of the Senate.He was born in Quorn, South...
, the GST required Democrat support to pass. In an election fought on tax, the Democrats publicly stated that they liked neither the Liberal (GST) tax package or the Labor package, but pledged to work with whichever party was elected to make their tax package better. They campaigned with the slogan "No GST on food".
In 1999, after negotiations with Prime Minister Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
, Meg Lees
Meg Lees
Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from...
and Andrew Murray
Andrew Murray
Andrew or Andy Murray may refer to: * Andrew Murray, often spelt Andrew Moray, leader of the Scots during the Scottish Wars of Independence...
agreed to support the A New Tax System (ANTS) legislation with exemptions from GST for most food and some medicines, as well as many environmental and social concessions. Five Australian Democrats senators voted in favour.
However, two dissident senators on the party's left Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008...
and Andrew Bartlett
Andrew Bartlett
Andrew John Julian Bartlett is an Australian politician. He was formerly an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1997 to 2008, representing the state of Queensland. He was the leader of the Democrats from 2002 to 2004, and deputy leader from 2004 to 2008.-Early life and...
voted against the GST.
In 2001, a leadership spill saw Meg Lees
Meg Lees
Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from...
replaced as leader by Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008...
after a very public and bitter leadership battle. Despite criticism of Stott Despoja's youth and lack of experience, the 2001 election saw the Democrats receive similar media coverage to the previous election. Despite the internal divisions, the Australian Democrats' election result in 2001 was quite good. However, it was not enough to prevent the loss of Vicki Bourne
Vicki Bourne
Vicki Worrall Bourne is a former Australian Democrats Senator for New South Wales from 1990 to 2002.Bourne was born in Sydney; she attended the selective High School, Fort Street, and then UNSW where she obtained a BSc and MSc...
's Senate seat in NSW.
Ongoing tensions between Stott Despoja and Lees led to Stott Despoja standing down from the leadership. It led to a protracted leadership battle in 2002, which eventually led to the election of Senator Andrew Bartlett as leader. However, the tension led to Meg Lees
Meg Lees
Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from...
leaving the party in 2002, becoming an independent and forming the Australian Progressive Alliance
Australian Progressive Alliance
The Australian Progressive Alliance was a minor liberal party in Australia, formed by Meg Lees, an independent senator and former leader of the Australian Democrats, in April 2003...
.
On 6 December 2003, Andrew Bartlett stepped aside temporarily as leader of the party, after an incident in which he assaulted Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
Senator Jeannie Ferris
Jeannie Ferris
Jeannie Margaret Ferris was an Australian politician, lobbyist, journalist, and Liberal Senator for South Australia. She was educated at Monash University, where she graduated in agricultural economics....
on the floor of Parliament
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, largely modelled in the Westminster tradition, but with some influences from the United States Congress...
while intoxicated. The party issued a statement stating that Deputy Leader Lyn Allison
Lyn Allison
Lynette Fay "Lyn" Allison is an Australian politician. She was a member of the Australian Senate from 1996 to 2008, representing the state of Victoria. She was the last federal parliamentary leader of the Australian Democrats....
would serve as the Acting Leader of the party. Bartlett apologised to the Democrats, Jeannie Ferris and the Australian public for his behaviour and assured all concerned that it would never happen again. On 29 January 2004, after seeking medical treatment, Bartlett returned to the Australian Democrats leadership, vowing to abstain from alcohol.
2004
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
in South Australia, where they received between 7 and 31 per cent of the Lower House vote in 2001, and between 1 and 4 per cent in 2004. Three incumbent senators were defeated—Aden Ridgeway
Aden Ridgeway
Aden Derek Ridgeway , Australian politician, was a member of the Australian Senate for New South Wales, from 1999 to 2005, representing the Australian Democrats. During his term he was the only Aboriginal member of the Australian Parliament.-Early history:Ridgeway was born in Macksville, New South...
(NSW), Brian Greig
Brian Greig
Brian Andrew Greig OAM , Australian politician, was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1999 to 2005, representing the state of Western Australia....
(WA) and John Cherry (Qld). Following the loss, the customary post-election leadership ballot installed Lyn Allison as leader and Andrew Bartlett as her deputy.
From 1 July 2005 the Australian Democrats lost official parliamentary party status, being represented by only four senators while the governing Liberal-National Coalition gained a majority and potential control of the Senate—the first time this advantage had been enjoyed by any government since 1980.
2006
On 5 January 2006, the ABC reported that the Tasmanian Electoral Commission had de-registered that division of the party for failing to provide a list containing the required number of members to be registered for Tasmanian state and local elections.On 18 March 2006, at the 2006 South Australian state election
South Australian legislative election, 2006
The state election for the 51st Parliament of South Australia was held in the Australian state of South Australia on 18 March 2006, and was conducted by the independent State Electoral Office.-House of Assembly:...
, the Australian Democrats were reduced to 1.7 per cent of the Legislative Council (upper house) vote. Their sole councillor up for re-election, Kate Reynolds
Kate Reynolds
Kathryn Joy "Kate" Reynolds was an Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 2003 to 2006....
, was defeated.
After the election, South Australian senator Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008...
denied rumours that she was considering quitting the party.
In early July, Richard Pascoe, national and South Australian party president, resigned, citing slumping opinion polls and the poor result in the 2006 South Australian election as well as South Australian parliamentary leader Sandra Kanck
Sandra Kanck
Sandra Myrtho Kanck is a South Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the South Australian Legislative Council 1993-2009, and at the time of the announcement of her resignation in November 2008, her party's sole remaining member of any Australian parliament...
's comments regarding the drug MDMA which he saw as damaging to the party.
On 5 July 2006, Australian Democrats senator for Western Australia Andrew Murray
Andrew Murray (politician)
Andrew James Marshall Murray is an Australian politician. He was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1996 to 2008, representing Western Australia.Murray was born in Hove, in the United Kingdom...
announced his intention not to contest the 2007 federal election, citing frustration arising from the Howard Government's control of both houses and his unwillingness to serve another six-year term. His term ended on 30 June 2008.
On 28 August 2006, the founder of the Australian Democrats, Don Chipp
Don Chipp
Donald Leslie Chipp, AO was an Australian politician, and the inaugural leader of the Australian Democrats.-Early life:...
, died. Former prime minister Bob Hawke said: "... there is a coincidental timing almost between the passing of Don Chipp and what I think is the death throes of the Democrats. "
On 22 October 2006, Australian Democrats Senator Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Stott Despoja
Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008...
announced her intention not to seek re-election at the 2007 federal election due to health concerns. Her term ended on 30 June 2008.
In November 2006, the Australian Democrats fared very poorly in the Victorian state election, receiving a Legislative Council vote tally of only 0.83%, less than half of the party's result in 2002 (1.79 per cent).
2007
In the New South Wales state election of March 2007, the Australian Democrats lost their last remaining NSW Upper House representative, Arthur Chesterfield-EvansArthur Chesterfield-Evans
Arthur Chesterfield-Evans is an Australian medical practitioner, politician and peace activist who served as a member of the Legislative Council of New South Wales from 1998 to 2007.-Medical career:...
. The party fared poorly, gaining only 1.8 per cent of the Legislative Council vote. A higher vote was achieved in some of the Legislative Assembly seats selectively contested as compared to 2003. However, the statewide vote share fell because the party was unable to field as many candidates as in 2003.
In the Victorian state by-election in Albert Park District the Australian Democrats stood candidate Paul Kavanagh, who polled a respectable 5.75 per cent of the primary vote, despite a large number of candidates, and all media attention focusing on the battle between Labor and Greens candidates.
On 13 September 2007, the ACT Democrats (Australian Capital Territory Division of the party) was deregistered by the ACT Electoral Commissioner, being unable to demonstrate a minimum membership of 100 electors.
As was widely expected, the Democrats had no success at the 2007 federal election. Two incumbent senators, Lyn Allison (Victoria) and Andrew Bartlett (Queensland), were defeated, their seats both reverting to major parties. Their two remaining colleagues, Andrew Murray (WA) and Natasha Stott Despoja (SA), did not run for new terms. All four senators' terms expired on 30 June 2008—leaving the Australian Democrats with no federal representation for the first time since its founding in 1977. An ABC report noted that "on the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) website the party is now referred to just as 'other'".
2008
The party achieved only 1.24% of the vote at the federal 2008 Mayo by-electionMayo by-election, 2008
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Mayo on 6 September 2008, following the retirement of Liberal Party MP Alexander Downer. The by-election was held on the same day as the Lyne by-election, and the Western Australian state election.The writ for the...
in South Australia. At the Australian Capital Territory general election, 2008
Australian Capital Territory general election, 2008
Elections to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly were held on Saturday, 18 October 2008. The incumbent Labor Party, led by Jon Stanhope, was challenged by the Liberal Party, led by Zed Seselja. Candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single...
, the party's ungrouped candidates obtained 0.3% of the vote for Ginninderra (Darren Churchill) and 0.2% in Molonglo (Greg Tannahill).
2009
David Winderlich
David Winderlich , is an Australian teacher, public servant and politician who in 2009 was appointed to fill a casual vacancy in the South Australian Legislative Council following the November 2008 resignation of Australian Democrats member Sandra Kanck...
, announced he would leave the party and sit as an independent unless the South Australian Democrats could recruit 1,000 new members by November 2009. When this clearly could not eventuate, he resigned from the party on 7 October 2009, continued to sit as an independent and was defeated at the 2010 election.
David Collyer contested the 2009 Higgins by-election
Higgins by-election, 2009
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Higgins on 5 December 2009. This was triggered as a result of the resignation of former Treasurer and former Liberal Party deputy leader Peter Costello...
and received 2.3 percent of the vote.
2010
The South Australian Democrats contested the state election on 20 March 2010. The lead Legislative Council candidate was animal rights activist and former independent, Jeanie Walker with supporting candidates Tom Salerno and Sandra Kanck They attracted 0.9% of the total primary vote. However, on preferences, Jeanie Walker survived until the 35th round of counting, losing to micro-party Dignity for Disability's Kelly Vincent who was elected in the 43rd round. Eight House of Assembly seats were also contested, averaging 2.24 per cent of the vote in those seats.At the 2010 federal election, Democrat candidates again failed to secure any seats in the Senate. They polled very poorly, achieving only 0.5%–0.75% of vote in the states and 1.6% of the vote in the ACT.
Support
Support for the Democrats historically tended to fluctuate between about 5 and 10 per cent of the population and was geographically concentrated around the wealthy dense CBD and inner-suburban neighbourhoodsCentral business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
of the capital cities (especially Adelaide). Therefore, they never managed to win a House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
seat. During the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s they typically held one or two Senate
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
seats in each state, as well as having some representatives in state parliaments and local councils.
Following the internal conflict over GST
Goods and Services Tax (Australia)
The GST is a broad sales tax of 10% on most goods and services transactions in Australia. It is a value added tax, not a sales tax, in that it is refunded to all parties in the chain of production other than the final consumer....
(1998–2001) and resultant leadership changes, a dramatic decline occurred in the Democrats' membership and voting support in all states. Simultaneously, an increase was recorded in support for the Australian Greens
Australian Greens
The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
who, by 2004, were supplanting the Democrats as a substantial third party
Third party (politics)
In a two-party system of politics, the term third party is sometimes applied to a party other than the two dominant ones. While technically the term is limited to the third largest party or third oldest party, it is common, though innumerate, shorthand for any smaller party.For instance, in the...
. The trend was noted that year by political scientists Dean Jaensch et al. Elsewhere, Jaensch later suggested it was possible the Democrats could make a political comeback in the federal arena.
Following Tony Abbott
Tony Abbott
Anthony John "Tony" Abbott is the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian House of Representatives and federal leader of the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott has represented the seat of Warringah since the 1994 by-election...
's displacement of Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Bligh Turnbull is an Australian politician. He has been a member of the Australian House of Representatives since 2004, and was Leader of the Opposition and parliamentary leader of the Liberal Party from 16 September 2008 to 1 December 2009.Turnbull has represented the Division...
as federal leader of the Liberal Party in 2009, the Democrats sought to attract the support of "those Liberals who no longer feel they can support their party.
Leadership
Aden Ridgeway
Aden Derek Ridgeway , Australian politician, was a member of the Australian Senate for New South Wales, from 1999 to 2005, representing the Australian Democrats. During his term he was the only Aboriginal member of the Australian Parliament.-Early history:Ridgeway was born in Macksville, New South...
was deputy leader under Natasha Stott Despoja.
Federal parliamentary leaders of the Australian Democrats.
| Leader | Electorate | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Don Chipp Don Chipp Donald Leslie Chipp, AO was an Australian politician, and the inaugural leader of the Australian Democrats.-Early life:... |
Victoria | 1977–1986 | Formerly Liberal Party MP for Hotham Division of Hotham The Division of Hotham is an Australian Electoral Division in Victoria. The division was created in 1969 and is named for Sir Charles Hotham, Governor of Victoria 1854-55. It is located in the south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Hotham covers an area of approximately 72 square kilometres from... , Victoria |
| Janine Haines Janine Haines Janine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation... |
South Australia | 1986–1990 | Resigned leadership and Senate seat to contest the Lower House seat of Kingston |
| Michael Macklin Michael Macklin Michael John Macklin is a former Australian Franciscan friar, educator and fundraiser who was an Australian Democrats senator for Queensland,... |
Queensland | 1990–1990 | Leader from federal election night 24 March until 30 June 1990. |
| Janet Powell Janet Powell Janet Frances Powell in Nhill, Victoria, is an Australian politician.She was appointed a senator for Victoria, representing the Australian Democrats, upon the resignation of the party's founder, Don Chipp, in 1986. She was elected the following year. She became the third leader of the party, from... |
Victoria | 1990–1991 | |
| John Coulter | South Australia | 1991–1993 | |
| Cheryl Kernot Cheryl Kernot Cheryl Kernot is an Australian politician, academic, and political activist. She was a member of the Australian Senate representing Queensland for the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 1997, and the fifth leader of the Australian Democrats from 1993 to 1997... |
Queensland | 1993–1997 | Resigned the leadership 15 October 1997. |
| Meg Lees Meg Lees Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from... |
South Australia | 1997–2001 | |
| Natasha Stott Despoja Natasha Stott Despoja Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008... |
South Australia | 2001–2002 | Resigned the leadership 21 August 2002. |
| Brian Greig Brian Greig Brian Andrew Greig OAM , Australian politician, was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1999 to 2005, representing the state of Western Australia.... |
Western Australia | 2002 | Interim leader from 23 August until 5 October 2002 |
| Andrew Bartlett Andrew Bartlett Andrew John Julian Bartlett is an Australian politician. He was formerly an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1997 to 2008, representing the state of Queensland. He was the leader of the Democrats from 2002 to 2004, and deputy leader from 2004 to 2008.-Early life and... |
Queensland | 2002–2004 | |
| Lyn Allison Lyn Allison Lynette Fay "Lyn" Allison is an Australian politician. She was a member of the Australian Senate from 1996 to 2008, representing the state of Victoria. She was the last federal parliamentary leader of the Australian Democrats.... |
Victoria | 2004–2008 |
Former senators
| Senator | State | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Janine Haines Janine Haines Janine Haines, AM , Australian politician, was the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. An Australian Democrat, she was also the first member of that party to enter the federal parliament after the party's formation... |
South Australia | 1977–1978; 1981–1990 |
| Don Chipp Don Chipp Donald Leslie Chipp, AO was an Australian politician, and the inaugural leader of the Australian Democrats.-Early life:... |
Victoria | 1978–1986 |
| Colin Mason Colin Mason Colin Victor James Mason is a New Zealand-born Australian journalist, author and former politician.Mason worked for 14 years as the first foreign correspondent of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and became deeply involved in Asian affairs... |
New South Wales | 1978–1987 |
| Michael Macklin Michael Macklin Michael John Macklin is a former Australian Franciscan friar, educator and fundraiser who was an Australian Democrats senator for Queensland,... |
Queensland | 1981–1990 |
| John Siddons John Siddons John Royston Siddons was an Australian politician. He was a businessman and the executive chairman of Siddons Industries Ltd. before entering politics. In 1980, he was elected to the Australian Senate as a Democrats senator for Victoria... |
Victoria | 1981–1983; 1985–1986 (1987)Resigned from party in November 1986 and sat as an independent senator until defeat at the 1987 election as a Unite Australia Party candidate. |
| Jack Evans | Western Australia | 1983–1985 |
| David Vigor David Vigor David Bernard Vigor was a member of the Australian Senate, representing the Australian Democrats and the Unite Australia Party.... |
South Australia | 1985–1987 |
| Norm Sanders Norm Sanders Norman Karl Sanders is an Australian former politician, representing the Australian Democrats in the Tasmanian House of Assembly from 1980 to 1982 and the Australian Senate from 1985 to 1990.-Early life:... |
Tasmania | 1985–1990 |
| Janet Powell Janet Powell Janet Frances Powell in Nhill, Victoria, is an Australian politician.She was appointed a senator for Victoria, representing the Australian Democrats, upon the resignation of the party's founder, Don Chipp, in 1986. She was elected the following year. She became the third leader of the party, from... |
Victoria | 1986–1992 (1993)Resigned from party in July 1992 and sat as an independent senator until defeat at the 1993 election. |
| Paul McLean Paul McLean (Australian politician) Paul Alexander McLean is an Australian advocate of banking reform and former Australian Democrats senator for New South Wales .... |
New South Wales | 1987–1991 |
| Jean Jenkins Jean Jenkins Jean Alice Jenkins is an Australian educator in languages and served as an Australian Democrats senator for Western Australia from 1987 to 1990. She is also noted as an originator in Western Australia of NAATI-accredited level 2 courses in translation and interpreting, and as a campaigner for... |
Western Australia | 1987–1990 |
| Vicki Bourne Vicki Bourne Vicki Worrall Bourne is a former Australian Democrats Senator for New South Wales from 1990 to 2002.Bourne was born in Sydney; she attended the selective High School, Fort Street, and then UNSW where she obtained a BSc and MSc... |
New South Wales | 1990–2002 |
| Sid Spindler Sid Spindler Siegfried Emil "Sid" Spindler was an Australian politician representing the Australian Democrats in the Australian Senate for one term from 1990 to 1996.... |
Victoria | 1990–1996 |
| Cheryl Kernot Cheryl Kernot Cheryl Kernot is an Australian politician, academic, and political activist. She was a member of the Australian Senate representing Queensland for the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 1997, and the fifth leader of the Australian Democrats from 1993 to 1997... |
Queensland | 1990–1997 |
| John Coulter | South Australia | 1987–1995 |
| Robert Bell Robert Bell (Australian politician) Robert John Bell was an Australian politician.Born in Hobart, he was educated at the University of Tasmania and the University of New England before becoming a teacher and youth employment co-ordinator. He was later an electorate assistant and served on Hobart City Council... |
Tasmania | 1990–1996 |
| Karin Sowada Karin Sowada Karin Nicole Sowada is an Australian archaeologist and former politician. She served two years as an Australian Democrats senator for New South Wales between 1991 and 1993, filling the casual vacancy created by the resignation of Paul McLean... |
New South Wales | 1991–1993 |
| John Woodley John Woodley John Woodley is a Christian Minister of religion and was a Senator representing the state of Queensland, Australia, in the Australian Senate.-Education:... |
Queensland | 1993–2001 |
| Meg Lees Meg Lees Meg Heather Lees was a member of the Australian Senate from 1990 to 2005, representing the state of South Australia. She represented the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 2002, and was an independent senator between 2002 and 2005, adopting the party designation Australian Progressive Alliance from... |
South Australia | 1990–2002 (2005)Resigned from party in July 2002 and sat as an independent senator until defeat at the 2004 election as an Australian Progressive Alliance candidate. |
| Natasha Stott Despoja Natasha Stott Despoja Natasha Jessica Stott Despoja AM is an Australian former politician and former leader of the Australian Democrats. She was a Democrats senator for South Australia from 1995 to 2008... |
South Australia | 1995–2008 |
| Lyn Allison Lyn Allison Lynette Fay "Lyn" Allison is an Australian politician. She was a member of the Australian Senate from 1996 to 2008, representing the state of Victoria. She was the last federal parliamentary leader of the Australian Democrats.... |
Victoria | 1996–2008 |
| Andrew Murray Andrew Murray (politician) Andrew James Marshall Murray is an Australian politician. He was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1996 to 2008, representing Western Australia.Murray was born in Hove, in the United Kingdom... |
Western Australia | 1996–2008 |
| Andrew Bartlett Andrew Bartlett Andrew John Julian Bartlett is an Australian politician. He was formerly an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1997 to 2008, representing the state of Queensland. He was the leader of the Democrats from 2002 to 2004, and deputy leader from 2004 to 2008.-Early life and... |
Queensland | 1997–2008 |
| Aden Ridgeway Aden Ridgeway Aden Derek Ridgeway , Australian politician, was a member of the Australian Senate for New South Wales, from 1999 to 2005, representing the Australian Democrats. During his term he was the only Aboriginal member of the Australian Parliament.-Early history:Ridgeway was born in Macksville, New South... |
New South Wales | 1999–2005 |
| Brian Greig Brian Greig Brian Andrew Greig OAM , Australian politician, was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Senate from 1999 to 2005, representing the state of Western Australia.... |
Western Australia | 1999–2005 |
| John Cherry | Queensland | 2001–2005 |
Former members in the states and territories
| State | Representative | House | Division | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY | Gordon Walsh | House of Assembly Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly The Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly was the main elected representative body of the Australian Capital Territory between 1975 and 1986, when preparations began to be made for the granting of self-government to the Territory... |
1979–1985 | |
| Ivor Vivian | House of Assembly | 1979–1985 | ||
| Roslyn Dundas Roslyn Dundas Roslyn Dundas is an Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2004, when she was defeated in a bid for re-election... |
Legislative Assembly | Ginninderra | 2001–2004 | |
| NEW SOUTH WALES | Elisabeth Kirkby Elisabeth Kirkby Elisabeth "Liz" Kirkby was an Australia-based theatre and television actress and politician known as a long time member of the New South Wales Legislative Council.... |
Legislative Council | 1981–1998 | |
| Richard Jones | Legislative Council | 1988–1996Resigned from party in 1996 and sat as an independent MLC until retirement at the 2003 election. | ||
| Arthur Chesterfield-Evans Arthur Chesterfield-Evans Arthur Chesterfield-Evans is an Australian medical practitioner, politician and peace activist who served as a member of the Legislative Council of New South Wales from 1998 to 2007.-Medical career:... |
Legislative Council | 1998–2007 | ||
| WESTERN AUSTRALIA | Norm Kelly Norm Kelly (Australian politician) Norman John Patrick "Norm" Kelly is a former Australian politician. Born in Darlinghurst, New South Wales, he was a photographer before entering politics. In 1982, he moved to Western Australia. In 1996, he was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Council for East Metropolitan region as a... |
Legislative Council | East Metropolitan Region | 1997–2001 |
| Helen Hodgson Helen Hodgson Helen Margaret Hodgson, née Applin , is a former Western Australian state politician of the Australian Democrats party. Born in Bristol, England, she migrated to Australia in 1963... |
Legislative Council | North Metropolitan Region | 1997–2001 | |
| SOUTH AUSTRALIA | Robin Millhouse Robin Millhouse Robin Rhodes Millhouse QC has been, at various times, the South Australian Attorney-General, the first Australian Democrats parliamentarian, and the Chief Justice of both Kiribati and Nauru.... |
Legislative Assembly | Mitcham | 1977–1982 |
| Lance Milne Lance Milne Kenneth Lance Milne was an Australian Democrats member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 1979 to 1985.-External links:*... |
Legislative Council | 1979–1985 | ||
| Heather Southcott Heather Southcott Heather Southcott was an Australian politician, representing the electoral district of Mitcham in the South Australian House of Assembly for the Australian Democrats.... |
Legislative Assembly | Mitcham | 1982 | |
| Ian Gilfillan Ian Gilfillan Ian Gilfillan is a former Australian politician. He was educated in Adelaide and was based on Kangaroo Island. He contested the 1974 federal election as a member of the Australia Party, but joined the Australian Democrats in 1977. In 1982, he was elected to the South Australian Legislative Council... |
Legislative Council | 1982–1993, 1997–2006 | ||
| Mike Elliott Mike Elliott (politician) Michael John Elliott is a former Australian politician. He graduated from the University of Adelaide with a Bachelor of Science, and later achieved a Graduate Diploma of Teaching. In 1985 he was elected to the South Australian Legislative Council as a Democrat. He resigned in 1993 but was... |
Legislative Council | 1985–2003 | ||
| Sandra Kanck Sandra Kanck Sandra Myrtho Kanck is a South Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the South Australian Legislative Council 1993-2009, and at the time of the announcement of her resignation in November 2008, her party's sole remaining member of any Australian parliament... |
Legislative Council | 1993–2009 | ||
| Kate Reynolds Kate Reynolds Kathryn Joy "Kate" Reynolds was an Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 2003 to 2006.... |
Legislative Council | 2003–2006 | ||
| David Winderlich David Winderlich David Winderlich , is an Australian teacher, public servant and politician who in 2009 was appointed to fill a casual vacancy in the South Australian Legislative Council following the November 2008 resignation of Australian Democrats member Sandra Kanck... |
Legislative Council | 2009Resigned from party on 7 October 2009 and sat as an independent MLC until 2010 election when was not re-elected. | ||
| TASMANIA | Norm Sanders Norm Sanders Norman Karl Sanders is an Australian former politician, representing the Australian Democrats in the Tasmanian House of Assembly from 1980 to 1982 and the Australian Senate from 1985 to 1990.-Early life:... |
Legislative Assembly | Denison | 1980–1982 |
See also
- Liberalism
- Liberalism worldwideLiberalism worldwideThis article gives information on liberalism in diverse countries around the world. It is an overview of parties that adhere more or less to the ideas of political liberalism and is therefore a list of liberal parties around the world....
- List of liberal parties
- Liberal democracyLiberal democracyLiberal democracy, also known as constitutional democracy, is a common form of representative democracy. According to the principles of liberal democracy, elections should be free and fair, and the political process should be competitive...
- Timeline of (small-l) liberal parties in Australia
Further reading
- Bennett D, Discord in the Democrats PWHCE article, Melbourne 2002
- Beyond Our Expectations—Proceedings of the Australian Democrats First National Conference, Canberra, 16–17 February 1980. [Papers by: Don Chipp, Sir Mark Oliphant, Prof. Stephen Boyden, Bob Whan, Julian Cribb, Colin Mason, John Siddons, A. McDonald]
- Chipp D (ed. Larkin J) Chipp, Methuen Haynes, North Ryde NSW, 1987 ISBN 0-454-01345-0
- Gauja A Keeping the Bastards Honest: The Political Legacy of the Australian Democrats Conference paper for Politics beyond the mainstream at University of BirminghamUniversity of BirminghamThe University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
November 2007
- Paul A and Miller L The Third Team July 2007 A historical essay in 30 Years—Australian Democrats Melbourne 2007. (A 72-page anthology of historical and biogaphical monographs about the state and federal parliamentary experiences of the Democrats, for the party's 30th anniversary.)
- Sugita H Challenging 'twopartism'—the contribution of the Australian Democrats to the Australian party system, PhD thesis, Flinders University of South Australia, July 1995
- Warhurst J (ed.) Keeping the bastards honest Allen & Unwin Sydney 1997 ISBN 10 1864484209
- Warhurst J, Don Chipp Was The Right Man In The Right Place At The Right Time Canberra Times 7 September 2006
External links
- Australian Democrats Official site of the party
- Don Chipp Foundation
- Andrew Murray Archived unofficial site of former senator
- Natasha Stott Despoja Archived unofficial site of former senator