NationStates Jolt Archive

For NSG Ausssies, what party will you be voting for this october/november will you be voting for whenever the govt calls an election this year, I spose it's a while away yet considering the govt usually calls one at november/october, but they could call one tommorrow if they wanted. So I thought I'd scope some opinions. I won't go into your own Federal candidates for your location, or what order your preferences will be, just who you will give your first preference too.

I say you blokes pick 'a dingo, kangaroo or a walabe!

I can't vote, but if I would, I'd vote strategically. If Labor is a shoe-in, I'd pick the Greens. If it might get close, I'd pick Rudd. Anything to get rid of Howard.

Then after a term or so, Rudd will stand against Turnbull, and I'd vote for the latter.

EDIT: Oh, and Greens for senate, obviously.

I can't vote
What?! Why not?! Surely immigration laws in Australia allow for immigrants to vote!

What?! Why not?! Surely immigration laws in Australia allow for immigrants to vote!

Are you a citizen Neu Leonstein?

What?! Why not?! Surely immigration laws in Australia allow for immigrants to vote!
Nope.

Are you a citizen Neu Leonstein?
Nope.

But I do get to pay taxes. That's something, right?



...



Right?

Neu Leonstein, you can become a citizen right now, here is Howard's new pledge to 'Australian Values' for you:

I <insert name> pledge allegiance to the Liberal Party of Australia, and for the ideals for which it stands, indivisible, with rigid family values and rich tax cuts for all.

I vote for whichever party wants to legalize drugs, privatize medicine, deregulate the economy, lower taxes, and drastically reduce the size and scope of government. Which one might that be?

I vote for whichever party wants to legalize drugs, privatize medicine, deregulate the economy, lower taxes, and drastically reduce the size and scope of government. Which one might that be?

That would be the Liberal Party, except for legalising drugs.

I vote for whichever party wants to legalize drugs, privatize medicine, deregulate the economy, lower taxes, and drastically reduce the size and scope of government. Which one might that be?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Democratic_Party_of_Australia

:(

That would be the Liberal Party, except for legalising drugs.
Meh, that's a conservative party, not a libertarian one. Occasionally you'll hear conservatives pay lip service to libertarianism because they need to keep up the myth that the two have anything at all to do with each other, but in reality there's nothing there.

Greens. I live in a seat that has been Labor since 1980.

EDIT - oh, apparently in the past couple of years it has been redistributed and is now "very marginal". Probably Labor, then...

That would be the Liberal Party, except for legalising drugs.

And, you know, drastically reducing the size of government.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Democratic_Party_of_Australia


w00t and pwn.

I voted Liberal in '04, with the utmost conviction. I'll be voting Liberal in '07, but wincing as I do it. Howard has a good team, but I'm not so keen on Howard himself.

On the off-chance the Liberals win again, I would like to see a pass over to Peter Costello halfway through the term. The man tells Monty Python jokes in Parliament. That would make him one of the best PMs ever. Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott are on my list of people I certainly DON'T want leading the liberals. Dithering Downer won't be much use. Julie Bishop would make a good deputy to Costello; however that team would seriously upset the party's dominant right.

Kevin Rudd is incredibly competent and clever (although Rudd seems to using the word clever as an insult), but somehow he doesn't seem to be as Prime Ministerial as Beazley or even Taxicab Latham. He's the type of person I'd make Treasurer. More importantly, his team is full of idiots and crazy people. Carmen going is an improvement, but the Labor party still has a lot of dead wood.

This race is going to be close. I don't think it will be the landslide the polls say, but all things come to an end.

I say you blokes pick 'a dingo, kangaroo or a wallaby!

Fixed.

Labor. I would consider voting Green just for the sake of acting my age and being all edgy, but the Libs hold my seat so I'll have to give them preferences.

Rudd is just such a smart ****, I don't even mind that he is religious. I remember telling a Canadian/Pakistani friend of mine several years ago that he'd be PM one day. I know Labor does have some record breaking leads in the polls right now, but I'm not convinced they are a shoe-in.

If Howard does lose out and retire I have mixed feelings on who should replace him. Considering I don't want the Coalition back in power, I'd say Costello, since I don't think he has much of a chance of becoming PM. Turnbull on the other hand I genuinely like and if anyone was to lead the Libs to an election victory I'd like it to be him, but at the same time him being in the leadership position increases their chances of winning, so... Yeah...

I say you blokes pick 'a dingo, kangaroo or a walabe!

Please be quiet.

I voted Liberal in '04, with the utmost conviction. I'll be voting Liberal in '07, but wincing as I do it. Howard has a good team, but I'm not so keen on Howard himself.

On the off-chance the Liberals win again, I would like to see a pass over to Peter Costello halfway through the term. The man tells Monty Python jokes in Parliament. That would make him one of the best PMs ever. Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott are on my list of people I certainly DON'T want leading the liberals. Dithering Downer won't be much use. Julie Bishop would make a good deputy to Costello; however that team would seriously upset the party's dominant right.

Kevin Rudd is incredibly competent and clever (although Rudd seems to using the word clever as an insult), but somehow he doesn't seem to be as Prime Ministerial as Beazley or even Taxicab Latham. He's the type of person I'd make Treasurer. More importantly, his team is full of idiots and crazy people. Carmen going is an improvement, but the Labor party still has a lot of dead wood.

I have absolutely no idea who any of those people are. But then again, I'm not Australian.

Is this the Austrailia with Kangaroos or the one with Llamas?

Labour.

The local Liberal MP thinks moving nuclear waste around the NT and dumping it here is a great idea.

dam it i hate voting

Note to OP: You left out the Nats.

Note to OP: You left out the Nats.

And the democrats...oh wait...

I will be voting Labour. Despite Rudd's religiosity, he is the only realistic alternative to Howard available.

Like Neu Loenstein, I live here but can't vote (and can I have a 2 second rant over the fact that Australians residing in the UK can vote in UK elections, but not vice versa?)

However, my wife can vote. We live in the safest Labor Federal seat in the country (Batman, in north Melbourne suburbs, represented by Martin Ferguson), and that makes preferences irrelevant. Still, she'll be voting Green since Ferguson's safe.

And for the Senate, she was so disgusted by the election of Steven Fielding last time around that she'll be filling out all 60 something of those boxes below the line individually.

I'd urge all of you who can vote in Australia to do likewise rather than support the invidious and undemocratic practice of voting above the line for the Senate.

http://www.ldp.org.au/

http://www.ldp.org.au/

Libertarian philosophy is so innately obvious, I'm amazed that so few people see the truth of it.

People suck. :headbang:

Libertarian philosophy is so innately obvious, I'm amazed that so few people see the truth of it.



QFT

http://www.ldp.org.au/

Hmm, interesting. Looking at the LDP's wiki article lead me to this interesting page: List of political parties in Australia. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_parties_in_Australia) There seems to be a lot. Makes me wonder how hard it is to start one. I was going to create my own ideology in high-school, but I didn't know how to spell it. My last name ends in y, so I wasn't sure whether to make it -yism or -ism or what; none of them seemed right. Anyway... Yeah.

I say you vote in Steve Irwin's corpse.

Much more useful than a politician.

I say you vote in Steve Irwin's corpse.

Much more useful than a politician.

I don't see how. It would be incapable of passing any legislation or contributing in any way to Question time, his electorate and senate/house inquires and debates. Would just stink up the joint.

I am much more of a supporter of Gillard than Rudd, but I understand why she's the second in command. I also think that, since they are the only competition to the liberal brain-suckers, and I live in an extraordinarily marginal seat (Deakin, Vic), labor it is. Normally it would be greens, but I'd rather do my best to get rid of the current government.




This is, of course, if I was actually able to vote.

Any pro-republican parties?

*isn't familiar with Aussie politics*

Any pro-republican parties?

*isn't familiar with Aussie politics*

in what way , that we became one or the US kin

in what way , that we became one or the US kin

The kind that want Australia to become a republic.

The kind that want Australia to become a republic.

no they given up

Any pro-republican parties?

*isn't familiar with Aussie politics*

Crap, before I read page 3 I was about to respond to this with a lengthy post about the whole American-alliance thing.

Well Howard voted no in the 1999 referendum. Here is something I just found on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republicanism_in_Australia):

Party political positions

[edit] Liberal-National Coalition

The Liberal party has both republicans and supporters of the status quo in its ranks. The National party has few republicans and is against change as official policy.

Under Prime Minister Howard, the government initiated a process to settle the republican debate, involving a constitutional convention and a referendum. Howard, who supports the status quo, says the matter was resolved by the failure of the referendum.

Treasurer Peter Costello, who is tipped to replace Howard as leader of the federal Liberal Party when the latter retires, does support republicanism but has not hinted if he would initiate a new process.

[edit] Australian Labor Party

The Opposition Labor is pro-republic as a matter of policy and had pledged a series of plebiscites to restart the republican process. Labor spokesperson, Nicola Roxon says reform will "always fail if we seek to inflict a certain option on the public without their involvement. This time round, the people must shape the debate". [2].

[edit] Minor parties

The Australian Democrats and Australian Greens all support a move towards a republic. The Family First party does not have an official stance on the creation of an Australian republic.

Ah, thanks.

Australia isn't a Republic?

Australia isn't a Republic?

The Commonwealth of Australia is not a Republic

I vote Liberal

We have a Labor state government

We had Hawke

We had Keating

They screwed the pooch.

Rudd has STILL not yet said how he will pay for his promises...which means, as with Labor, that taxes go up.

Under Howard, I have taken home MORE of my pay, not less, have paid LESS for food than I did, and do not trust Rudd. He may be the "up and comer" but he is still untested and uncertain on a lot of issues.

Workchoices: Labor says they will repeal them...and have NOT yet explained fully WHAT they will put in its place, what it will do, how it will work, what laws will be in place.

I vote on issues, and as yet he hasn't convinced me.

Actually, the ALP isn't planning to repeal the Workplace Relations Act across the board. The detailess repeal will only apply to certain industries. The official explanation is certain industries need more flexibility than others. It'll be union industries and lower middle class groups that most certainly experience a repeal of WRA. The worst off, the poor without union protection, are going to be those the ALP ignore.

I will most probably voting Greens or Liberals which ever promises the greatest pro-choice ideals.

I'm not Australian, but I'd probably vote Green as my 1st preference and Labour as the second.

I will be voting Greens, with preferences towards Labour.

Remember people what Howard said, if you vote Labor, your voting for the communist unions to take over!:) ;)

I can't vote, but if I would, I'd vote strategically. If Labor is a shoe-in, I'd pick the Greens. If it might get close, I'd pick Rudd. Anything to get rid of Howard.

Then after a term or so, Rudd will stand against Turnbull, and I'd vote for the latter.

EDIT: Oh, and Greens for senate, obviously.

Like Neu Loenstein, I live here but can't vote (and can I have a 2 second rant over the fact that Australians residing in the UK can vote in UK elections, but not vice versa?)

However, my wife can vote. We live in the safest Labor Federal seat in the country (Batman, in north Melbourne suburbs, represented by Martin Ferguson), and that makes preferences irrelevant. Still, she'll be voting Green since Ferguson's safe.

And for the Senate, she was so disgusted by the election of Steven Fielding last time around that she'll be filling out all 60 something of those boxes below the line individually.

I'd urge all of you who can vote in Australia to do likewise rather than support the invidious and undemocratic practice of voting above the line for the Senate.

Become an Australian citizen & you can vote. I became a citizen about 8 or so years ago & have been happily voting ever since. They even let me keep my British & Canadian passports. :)

Remember people what Howard said, if you vote Labor, your voting for the communist unions to take over!:) ;)

Excellent, I'm a union member.

I will give my first preferences to Greens and then Labor, and Liberal last whatever other candidates are on the form. I support Labor as a government party mostly because Rudd brings a good agenda of social justice and welfare to the table, not just the 'survival of the richest' kind of ideology the Libs have. I am also very suspicious of the Libs connections to right-wing christian and anti-feminist groups that seem to lobby in the background.
I won't go into Rudd so much, but I would gladly encourage NSGers to read this essay he wrote recently:

http://www.themonthly.com.au/excerpts/issue17_excerpt_001.html

"Competitive markets are massive and generally efficient generators of economic wealth. They must therefore have a central place in the management of the economy. But markets sometimes fail, requiring direct government intervention through instruments such as industry policy. There are also areas where the public good dictates that there should be no market at all." - Rudd