Chapter 3.1:

A representative democracy is when people elect representatives to sit in the parliament to make laws on their behalf. The federal parliament is made up of the Governor General, the Senate (upper house) and the House of Representatives (lower house).

The aim of each political party is to win a majority in the House of Representatives and form a government. Meaning, winning 76 or more of the 151 electorates. It enables the successful political party to govern the country until the next election. The party's leader becomes the prime minister and other members of the party become government ministers. Whichever house fails, becomes the opposition. The shadow ministers monitor the activities of the relevant minister and criticise their performance.

Chapter 3.2:

Political parties are groups of people who band together because they share the same views about issues, they think are important. These groups work hard to promote their ideas and encourage members of the public to join them, in order to have some candidates elected to parliament. They aim to have laws passed that are consistent with their beliefs.

All political parties must be registered with the Australian Electoral Commission. In order to do so they must have the aims of the party submitted and the party must have at least 500 eligible voters - Australian citizens over 18 on the electoral roll- unless the party already has a member in parliament at the time it is formed.

The Australian Labor Party was formed in the 1890s by members of a trade union. Their goals are the belief that government has a responsibility to look after people.

The Liberal Party of Australia was formed by Robert Menzies in 1944. The party formed a coalition government with the National Party. Their aims are individual freedom and free enterprise.

The Nationals party were established as a federal party in the 1920s. Their main aims are the fight for equality of services, lifestyle and opportunity between the cities and regions.

The Australian Greens party was formed in 1992. Its aims are to look after the environment and for people to be treated with equality and have the right to have a say.

Examples of minor parties include Palmer United Party which Queensland businessman Clive Palmer founded.

Members of parliament who do not belong to a political party are called independents. They can choose to vote with one of the major parties or with minor parties or abstain from voting. They sit on crossbenches. It is difficult for them to be elected as they don’t have a party structure and membership to support them.

A platform is the goals and ideas of a political party that they propose to help persuade voters to support them.

A coalition is an alliance between two or more political parties, formed to improve their chances of winning an election or forming a government.

Chapter 3.3:

Key principles of the Australian electoral system:

• Universal Suffrage and secret ballot - all Australian citizens over the age of 18 have a right to vote. A secret ballot allows every voter to keep their vote private so no one can force them for a particular candidate.

• Compulsory voting - voting is compulsory for all eligible Australian citizens over the age of 18. Failure to do so results in a fine.

• Electoral roles - all Australians are required to register to vote when they are 18 the Australian Electoral Commission.

• Fixed or maximum terms for parliament - the time between different elections. No elections can be held after the max time.

• One vote, one value - Each person has one vote per house, so all votes are equal.

• Combinations of single-member and multi-member electorates - HOR has 151 members with each member representing a single electorate or seat. The Senate has each state listed as a. multi-member electorate and has 12 senators representing each one and 2 for each territory.

• Preferential voting and proportional representation. Preferable voting is used in HOR and state houses with single-member electorates. Voters are usually required to vote for candidates in order of preference. Proportional representation is used in all elections for multi-member electorates in the Senate. Voters are required to number preferences on the ballot paper though, they are voting a whole party in.

Rules about parliamentary terms:

Federal Parliament requires elections for HOR to be held at least every 3 years. The Senate requires it every 3 years. though, senators are elected for 6 years. State and territory parliaments hold elections every 4 years.

Other ways to vote:

• Pre-poll vote - Early centres open in all electorates. If a voter knows they will be away on election day, they can vote early.

• Postal vote: People can apply and receive ballot papers before election day and post them to the correct electoral office.

• Absence vote: If you are interstate for a federal election, you can complete an absentee vote at specific polling stations that have been designated interstate voting centres

People may not like the people who are governing and the choices they make. Another election is healed so parliament can make laws that best fit the beliefs of the people who voted for them.

Eligible voters are Australian citizens who are over 18 years old and are on the electoral roll.

A formal vote is a ballot paper that has been filled out correctly.

An informal vote is a ballot paper that hasn’t been filled out correctly and therefore can’t be counted.

A scrutineer is a representative of a parliamentary candidate who attends the counting of votes to ensure the count is fair.

Chapter 3.4:

Votes counted for the House of Representatives:

1. Get the absolute majority - half of the total plus one.

2. Get the first preference count.

3. Take the least voted option and distribute the second preference if not the absolute majority.

4. Continue until someone has the absolute majority.

Once first preferences have been counted, the results are phoned through to the Divisional Returning Officer. This is the official in charge of the voting process for the whole electorate. The DRO places the results into the AEC’s computerised election-management system, which then tallies the votes for all electorates across Australia.

Votes counted for the Senate:

Candidates are grouped on the ballot paper in hope that voters will support a party rather than individual candidates in the election.

In below-the-line voting, first preference is given to the first candidate in a group, second to the second candidate, and so on. If a voter votes above the line, the vote will then be interpreted as giving the voting preference in the exact same way, though, they are voting a whole party in.

To be elected to the Senate, a candidate has to achieve a quota of votes. If a candidate gains more first preference votes than is required to meet the quota, the surplus (extra) votes are distributed to the candidates shown as the second preference on the ballot paper. A proportion of all votes - is known as the transfer value. We divide the surplus above the quota by the total number of first-preference votes received by the first candidate to get this. Then you multiply that by the number of votes, the candidates have. This is done since it is not possible to guarantee all voters will be given their second preference to the second candidate in the group. If not, enough candidates have a full quota, and the candidate with the fewest first preferences is excluded.

A quota is something that refers to the share of votes required to be elected. It is calculated by (formal vote/# vacancies + 1) +1.

When two major parties have the same number of seats in the HOR following an election, there is said to be a ‘hung parliament.’ Minor party representatives or independents will decide to support one side or the other, and this will lead to that party forming government.

A government can have fewer seats than the opposition but is still able to govern because it has the support of enough crossbenchers to win important votes in the HOR, known as a minority government. To retain power, they must gather enough votes to support its spending decisions and retain the ‘confidence’ of the House.

Chapter 3.5:

The ‘whip’ in the party is the person who looks after the party and ensures they are doing the right thing.

Backbenchers are people on the HOR who usually younger and less experienced members of parliament are who occupy the back seats. They are involved in parliamentary debate, can serve on parliamentary committees, and can suggest amendments to bills and their own bills (private members’ bills).

Frontbenchers are in the front rows of the HOS. They are usually more senior party members and have a significant influence on policy decisions. They are members of the Cabinet. The cabinet is a council of senior members of parliament who are specifically chosen to assist the prime minister with policy decisions and other executive functions. Cabinet solidarity is when a Cabinet vote has been cast and the final verdict must be supported by all members of the Cabinet, regardless of personal opinion.

The prime minister has the final decision-making power along with the Governor-General. The prime minister can develop their own policies though, their power is kept in check as the policies still need to follow the same pathways through parliament as regular bills.

A mandate is an authority to act or make decisions on behalf of a group of other people. Pressure groups and members of the public can help set policy agendas by attempting to influence their local members and other politicians. When successful, this influence can both contribute to the development of new policy and result in the amendment or complete withdrawal of other policy decisions.

There are some restrictions placed on what governments can do when they are in power. For example, residual powers and tied grants. Residual powers are powers that were not allocated to a level of government in the Australian Constitution and are held by states. Tied grants are money given to states by the federal parliament that must be spent on a specific purpose e.g., funding for schools.

Dorothy Dixers, or Question Time, is when Members of Parliament ask members of their own party questions to provide an opportunity for ministers to promote their own policies and opinions. Question time is when ministers are able to directly scrutinise the decisions and policies of Members of Parliament.