http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-17/cassidy-pork-barrelling-and-the-hoax-of-'every-vote-counts'/7519082

80% of votes won't matter in this election, and consequently 80% of voters will be ignored by the politicians. Basically the current state of play is that if someone is in a safe seat and they are pissed off with the local member and/or their party, they are never going to switch to the other major party. So the seat remains safe forever, and the local member can sit back and continue ignoring his/her electorate.

until...

a popular independent comes along and gives the disenfranchised voter an option that doesn't involve switching to the other party. This happened in spectacular fashion in the state seat of Shepparton during the last election - the nats assumed they would win as they had always done, but suddenly 4 weeks before the election, an independent popped up out of nowhere, basically told the electorate they didn't have to put up with this crap, and she won the seat. Similar deal with Indi. For the sake of our democracy, lets hope it happens a lot more in future elections.

More people are waking up to this.

The others vote is growing and will be 30% soon enough.

A hung parliament might become the new norm - imagine someone like Tony having to negotiate with a hostile senate/trying to do what Julia did in 2010.

21st Century Dialup Network wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 10:03am:

More people are waking up to this. The others vote is growing and will be 30% soon enough. A hung parliament might become the new norm - imagine someone like Tony having to negotiate with a hostile senate/trying to do what Julia did in 2010.

The woman basher couldn't deal with a normal senate , hence why he makes the top ten for shortest serving prime ministers ever .

Thank heavens for the good people in the senate.   :)

wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 10:22am:

Thank heavens for the good people in the senate.   :)

Yeah....like Pauline Hanson.

polite_gandalf wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 9:51am:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-17/cassidy-pork-barrelling-and-the-hoax-of-'every-vote-counts'/7519082 80% of votes won't matter in this election, and consequently 80% of voters will be ignored by the politicians. Basically the current state of play is that if someone is in a safe seat and they are pissed off with the local member and/or their party, they are never going to switch to the other major party. So the seat remains safe forever, and the local member can sit back and continue ignoring his/her electorate. until... a popular independent comes along and gives the disenfranchised voter an option that doesn't involve switching to the other party. This happened in spectacular fashion in the state seat of Shepparton during the last election - the nats assumed they would win as they had always done, but suddenly 4 weeks before the election, an independent popped up out of nowhere, basically told the electorate they didn't have to put up with this crap, and she won the seat. Similar deal with Indi. For the sake of our democracy, lets hope it happens a lot more in future elections.

It is instructive to study the history of the Federal Parliament since 1975.

The 1975 Federal election was the nadir for the "Others" vote at 4.1% of the primary vote in the House. It was after the demise of the DLP and before the formation of the Australian Democrats. It was the last Federal election at which the party - or a coalition - won the election with a primary vote of 50% or more. 1975 was also the election when independent Brian Harradine was first elected to the Senate in Tasmania.

Since this trough in 1975, the share of the primary vote apportioned to "others" has climbed steadily. Much of this has gone to a prominent third party; Australian Democrats before 2000, the Greens thereafter. But other parties and independents have also increased their share of the vote.

1987 was the last Federal election when there were no crossbenchers returned in the House. Then along came Ted Mack, a popular independent who took North Sydney from a sitting Liberal member.

Since Mack showed us the way, every election has returned at least one MP on the crossbenches in the House, many of them independent. Some of these independents were elected as MPs for a major party then resigned from the party to sit as independents, such as Katter. Others were members of a major party but resigned from the party before contesting as an independent. Others have always been independent.

One thing is true though. Independents are a viable option. And increasingly, people are choosing them over anyone affiliated with a party. It is a sign of the malaise in Australian politics that electors are increasingly turning away from the major parties. This is something that the major parties need to take seriously. Why is this happening? This is a question that the major parties need to ask, before they are no longer in a position to ask.

Lisa Jones wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 10:26am:

wrote on Jun 17th, 2016 at 10:22am: Thank heavens for the good people in the senate.   :) Yeah....like Pauline Hanson.

Nope , Pauline not in the senate  :D :D :D :D

Yes, expect more hopeful independents to appear out of their rabbit burrows but don't expect many of them to actually get elected after the recent disasters of Oakeshotte and Windsor and the unelected ferals in the Senate.

juliar wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 11:44am:

Yes, expect more hopeful independents to appear out of their rabbit burrows but don't expect many of them to actually get elected after the recent disasters of Oakeshotte and Windsor and the unelected ferals in the Senate.

We expect Windsor to get elected, dear. Do  you want to give us the odds on Sportsbet?

hey 150 independent minds... I like that.. ::) ::)

imagine if half of them are Muslims??


should be interesting..

  guess what    to get anything done gandalf even they would have to do deals and agree... ::) ::)

,oh well back to the parties...

"Expect more independents in the future"

I tend to think it is more likely, than not!

However, I also think WE may have taken just a bit too much time, in coming to that conclusion!

perceptions_now wrote on Jun 17^th, 2016 at 3:17pm:

"Expect more independents in the future" I tend to think it is more likely, than not! However, I also think WE may have taken just a bit too much time, in coming to that conclusion!

But.....if an incumbent was an independant, your policy is to vote 'em out P_N!!