electoral system

There is little analysis of the electoral system plays in Australian politics, nor much exploration of alternatives, argues Anne McMenamin. Most of us have no direct voice in government, even though we are told we do — every three or four years.

Photo: Modified from original by Stilgherrian/Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0

Australia’s corrupt system of political patronage is well and truly exposed whenever the Australian Electoral Commission reports on electoral donations, writes Pip Hinman.

Outstanding service Fairfax columnist Gerald Henderson quotes Australian Workers’ Union leader Paul Howes concerning the family background of Greens Senate candidate Lee Rhiannon in the July 27 Sydney Morning Herald. I knew her parents, Bill and Freda Brown, since 1944, and I was privileged to be Bill’s campaign director when he stood for the federal parliament on several occasions.