News

The Age: Interactive Electoral map of Australia (2007)

Click on this link to be taken to a map that gives specific details and a seat-by-seat statistical rundown ahead of the election in Australia.

Sydney Morning Herald: Last figures show Howard needs a miracle (2007)

An article about the 2007 Australian parliamentary election.

The Age: Victory too far away (2007)

Article from highly respected Australian political analyst about the 2007 election.

The Age: Rudd Puts the lid on (2007)

Article about the 2007 electoral campaign in Australia

Australia election

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Australia rate hike prompts early election talk, Reuters (2009)

As Australian Central Bank decided to lift interest rates and the Senate discusses the emissions trade law, analysts start considering the possibility of early elections.

Australia opposition opens election fight on climate, Reuters (2010)

As Australian Prime Minister Rudd is expected to call elections in second half of 2010, the conservative opposition has already opened its campaign, mostly focusing on environmental issues. Among other things, leader of the opposition Abbott has promised a referendum on national government takeover of state-governed rivers and he also promised $699 million a year to recruit 15, 000 environmental workers.

Australia: Rudd to Debate Abbott in Start to Election Campaign, Bloomberg (2010)

In unprecedented leaders’ debate on health next week , the Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will face opposition leader Tony Abbott , effectively starting the election campaign before a date has been set for the ballot.

Australia's Rudd loses support in state elections, Reuters (2010)

The ruling Labour Party led by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd suffered a more than 7% drop in voter support during the state elections in Tasmania and South Australia. This loss comes ahead of the national elections, scheduled for late 2010. Even though Rudd's party lost the local elections, it still leads in national surveys and polls, highlighting the fact that Australians often vote for different parties in national and state elections.

Growing number of Australians could shape 2010 election, Reuters (2010)

Explosive population growth is shaping as a pivotal issue for Australian elections later this year, with most voters not sharing Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's preference for a "Big Australia," a survey showed on Thursday 8 April

Australia: Rudd Loses Lead in Poll for First Time Since Winning Election, Bloomberg (2010)

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s Labor party lost its lead for the first time since coming to power in 2007, according to a Newspoll taken after he shelved action on climate change last week.

Australia: Antony Green's House of Reps calculator, ABC Australia (2010)

Extensive coverage of federal, state and local elections. Election guides by ABC election analyst Antony Green, results, statistics, news and more.

Rudd’s Rating Falls to Record Low in Australian Poll, Bloomberg Business Week (2010)

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s approval rating dropped to its lowest since he took office in 2007 and his Labor party stands to lose if an election was called now, according to an opinion poll.

Australia:Gillard continues rise in polls, ABC News (2010)

The latest polls in Australia show that Ms Julia Gillard, deputy Prime Minister, is gaining percentage points over Kevin Rudd, the Australian Prime Minister. Mr Rudd is loosing ground as the Labor Party leaders despite his latest reforms.

Australian politician tells public: 'Don't believe what I say', Telegraph (2010)

Tony Abbott, leader of the Australian opposition, admitted on television that people should not believe everything he says. This statement astonished most viewers, but experts believe it could work on his advantage in the upcoming elections.

Australia poll foreshadows hung parliament, Reuters (2010)

This article highlights the possibility of a "hung" parliament as a result of the upcoming elections in Australia. The latest polls show the fall of Kevin Rudd's government (supported by 51 percent of the voters) and the rise of the Green Party.

Australia: The polling rise of the Greens, ABC News (2010)

This article reports on the rise of the Green Party in the latest polls in Australia. The record results (16%) is the best one that a third party has ever reached.

Australia: Malcolm Fraser's parting gift to Liberals, The Australian (2010)

This article comments the latest polls for the upcoming elections in Australia. The two main parties, the Liberal Party and the Labor Party, are slightly loosing the support of the electorate.

Australian PM could lose looming election: polls, Reuters (2010)

This article presents the results of the latest opinion polls in Australia: Kevin Rudd's Labor Party lost support of the majority of the electorate.

Australia: Rudd acknowledges poll woes, The Wall Street Journal (2010)

This article discusses the Australian Prime Minister's acknowledgment of the latest opinion polls. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd admitted that his ruling Labor Party could lose the next elections.

Australia: Election campaigns run online, The Australian (2010)

This article presents a new election portal (Electionmall) that will be launched in Australia. In Electionmall, candidates can manage their electoral campaigns from fund-raising to volunteer recruitment. This portal, which signed a deal with Microsoft last month, has been used in the recent Colombia and British elections.

Australia: Missing voting virgins a bad signs, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the youth enrollment for the upcoming elections in Australia. Only 78% of people from the age of 18 to 24 registered to vote this year, compared to 84% in 2007.

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Australia's first woman PM an old-school Labor leader, Reuters (2010)

This article presents Australia's new Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. Ms Gillard, an 'old-school' Labor Party politician, is the first woman to lead Australia. Ms Gillard's working-class background is very different from his predecessor's, Kevin Rudd.

Australia:Tony Abbott says Julia Gillard is 'rushing' towards a federal election, The Australian (2010)

Though Prime Minister Julia Gillard has yet to call an election opposition leader Tony Abbott is already on the campaign trail.

Australian PM may call election within days, International Business Times (2010)

This article reports on the latest opinion poll in Australia. The poll shows that Prime Minister Julia Gillard holds the support of the majority of the voters (the Labor Party gained 52%), and unofficial sources say that she might call for an election soon. Ms Gillard is the first woman Prime Minister in Australia's history.

Governor-General delays trip as election speculation mounts, ABC News (2010)

This article discusses the decision of the Australian Governor-General Quentin Bryce to postpone an official trip to next week, due to speculations about a possible call for elections. Last week, Prime Minister Julia Gillard hinted that she could call for a federal election within days.

Australia PM 'set to call elections', Aljazeera (2010)

This article reports on the possible call for elections in Australia. The Australian Broadcasting Corporaton (ABC) first reported that Prime Minister Julia Gillard is determined to call for new elections on Saturday. After becoming Australia's first female Prime Minister three weeks ago, Ms Gillard promised new elections. Elections will probably be scheduled for August 28.

Australia: Gillard tipped top call election tomorrow, ABC (2010)

This article reports on speculations about a possible call for elections in Australia. Prime Minister Julia Gillard promised new elections three weeks ago, when she replaced Kevin Rudd. The latest opinion polls showed a boost in the support to Ms Gillard's Labor Party.

Australia: Voting decisions 'only skin deep', ABC (2010)

This article reports on a survey carried out by the University of South Australia. In the survey, researchers discovered that Australian voters tend to choose their candidates rather superficially, based on their perceived competence rather than on their actual positions and actions.

Overseas Australians urged to register for election, Radio Australia News (2010)

This article reports on the registration procedures for Australians living abroad. The Australia Electoral Commission is expecting 60-70,000 registrations.

Australia: Final enrolments flood electoral commission, ABC News (2010)

This article reports on the voter registration in Australia. The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is having troubles keeping up with the flood of last-minute registrations. The AEC assistant media director Bernadette O'Meara, however, reassured citizens: despite minor delays and setbacks everything is running smoothly.

Australia: Young Tasmanians urged to get on the electoral roll, ABC News (2010)

This article reports on the Australian Electoral Commission's (AEC) call for young voters. The AEC announced that 25% of 18 year-olds are not registered voters, Tasmania is particularly influenced by this trend.

Australia general election set for August 21: PM Julia Gillard, The Times of India (2010)

This article reports on the Australian Prime Minister's decision to call for early general elections. After consulting Governor-General Quentin Bryce, PM Julia Gillard announced that new elections will be held on August 21st. The ruling Labour Party leader Julia Gillard will face off conservative Liberal leader Tony Abbott.

Australia: How to dominate an electorate, one viral tweet at a time, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the importance of social networks in the upcoming Australia elections. Twitter is expected to dominate the campaign: both candidates started their own accounts right away. The Labor Party plans to use Facebook as part of their political strategy as well.

Australia: 3,000 Territorians beat electoral roll deadline, ABC News (2010)

This article reports on the voters registration in Australia. The Australian Electoral Commission was overwhelmed by the number of people enrolling to vote. In the Northern Territory, the increase was particularly relevant: from the usual 100-200 to this year's 3000 enrollment forms.

Complex rules discourage Australians abroad from voting, ABC Radio Australia (2010)

This article discusses the registration and voting process for Australian citizens voting from abroad. In the past general elections, only 70,000 of the 1 million Australians abroad actually voted. Observers believe that the low turnout is due to complicated rules and procedures.

Australia: Gillard v Abbot - who's winning in social media? SBS Australia (2010)

This article discusses the role of the social media in the 2010 Australian electoral campaign. As experts found that the average Australian Internet user spends 17,6 hours online per week, Internet and the social media are becoming increasingly influential in politics.

Australia: Greens power supply, ABC News (2010)

This article presents the Australian Green Party's electoral platform and analyzes its strengths and weaknesses.

Will Australia's election really be a photo finish? Angus Reid Global Monitor (2010)

This article discusses Australia's election race. PM Julia Gillard insists that the race will be close, but according to this article she is just downplaying expectations. Ms Gillard has been appointed recently (becoming the first female prime minister) and in a few weeks she was able to raise her popularity consistently. The opposition's numbers, on the other hand, have not improved significantly.

Australia: Ban election gambling, MP says, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the proposal to ban betting on elections in Australia. Federal MP Micheal Johnson made this proposal, stating that it is inappropriate to bet on this delicate matters.

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Poll advantage narrows for Australia's Gillard, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the latest opinion polls published on The Australian. PM Julia Gillard's popularity seems to be undermined by her new mining tax. According to the poll, the Labor Party fell to 52% (from 55% a week ago), and the conservative opposition rose to 48% (from 45%).

Australia's election hits gender divide, The Washington Post (2010)

This article discusses the gender divide in the Australian electoral campaign. Opinion polls show that most of the women are supporting PM Julia Gillard (58%). Conservative leader Tony Abbott acknowledged the gender gap and adopted changes in his campaign as a reaction.

Australia: Teens get vote in Google mock election, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses Google's electoral initiative in Australia. Google created a platform to simulate the Australian federal elections and allow young people to vote. As a matter of fact, this feature targeted teenagers: the voters of tomorrow. The Labor Party candidate, Julia Gillard, welcomed this initiative and invited teens to get involved.

Australia: Should elections be less frequent? The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the need to have longer Federal Parliament terms in Australia. In 2007, Kevin Rudd promised to hold a referendum to introduce fixed four-year terms. The referendum, however, never took place and both candidates do not mention it in their campaigns.

Australia: Decline in voters 'a threat to nation's democracy", The Age (2010)

This article discusses the expected participation in the upcoming Australian federal elections. The Australian Electoral Commission denounced an alarming trend, and believes that the overall participation rate will be down this year (compared to 2007). Voting is compulsory in the Australian legal framework, and citizens who decided not to vote (with no sufficient reason) are charged with a $20 penalty.

Julia Gillard 'heading for defeat' in Australian elections, The Telegraph (2010)

This article reports on the latest opinion poll in Australia. The Labor Party candidate, Julia Gillard, appear to be losing the race: only 48% of voters support her, while 52% support the conservative opposition's Tony Abbot.

Australia: Pollies still missing the point of social media, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the involvement of the social media in the Australian upcoming elections. According the experts, politicians are not using the social media as the new and interactive tool that it is. In 2009, 152 Australian politicians were using Twitter, but they mostly use it to distribute their messages rather than to listen to the users.

Australia: Election debate to become threesome, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article reports on the Green Party's electoral campaign in Australia. Gradually, Green Party representatives are taking part at election debates.

Australian expats cast vote in federal elections, Gulf News (2010)

This article reports on the Australian expatriates' possibility to vote from abroad. In particular, this article reports on the Australian voters living in Abu Dhabi, who are currently voting. In the last Australian elections, more than 2,000 people voted in this region.

Australia: Polls open in the UK, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article reports on the biggest polling station for the Australian federal elections: the Australian House in London. This constituency can strongly influence the results sometimes, as 100,000 Australian citizens live in London (400,000 in the United Kingdom).

Australia's ruling Labor leads ahead of election-poll, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the last opinion poll in Australia (carried out by Newspoll). Julia Gillard, Labor Party candidate, appears to be leading the electoral competition with 52% of the possible votes, while the conservative opposition's Tony Abbott would gain 48% of the votes. The Reuters Poll Trend, on the other hand, showed that Australia faces a great risk to have an hung parliament (the first since World War Two).

Australia: Tony Abbott stands by election costings, The Australian (2010)

This article discusses the costs of the Australian electoral campaign for the upcoming elections. The two main opponents (the conservative coalition and the Labor Party) are accusing each other of over-spending, and consequently of mis-managing public money. Tony Abbot, leader of the coalition, promised to deliver a surplus much larger than the Labor (without revealing the figure).

Australia: Major parties missing the mark with young voters, ABC News (2010)

This article discusses the influence of young votes (under the age of 25) in Australia. The High Court recently ruled that anyone who was seven days late with their enrollment will now be able to vote (this ruling changed some parts of the Electoral Law). This sentence will allow 100,000 more people to vote, and most of them are young voters, a group that has not being targeted by the two major parties in the campaign.

Australians in Outback cast first votes in cliffhanger national election, The Telegraph (2010)

This article reports on the first voting operations in Australia. Voters in the country's Outback will be able to cast their first votes on Thursday (August 12). New opinion polls show that this will be a very difficult elections for both parties: Julia Gillard is supported by 50.1% of the people interviewed, while Tony Abbott by 49.9%.

How an Australian election works, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the latest updates from the Australian electoral campaign of what appear to be one of the tightest elections in two decades. Julia Gillard is leading the polls with only five percentage points, but everything could change in the five days left for the campaign.

Labor has big poll lead before Australia election, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the latest opinion polls in Australia. The electoral campaign, one of the "hottest" in the last years, is about to finish: elections are scheduled for August 21. The Nielsen poll results show that the Labor party is leading the competition (53%), with the conservative coalition (47%) falling behind.

Current Twitter trends: Australian elections, Singapore youth Olympic Games, Pakistan floods, The Independent (2010)

This article reports on the latest trends on Twitter. Unexpectedly, the Australian elections are becoming very popular (on 6th position in the 'top 10 talked about topics on Twitter'), right next to newly released movies and the Pakistan floods.

Australian election could hit Kiwis, Stuff (2010)

This article reports on the impact of the electoral campaign on the Kiwi community in Australia. Tony Abbot's plans for immigration could target the thousands of expat Kiwis in the country: he declared his intentions to review the agreement on freedom of movement between Australia and New Zealand as part of his reform.

Australia: Fears of massive swing in voter backlash, News.Au (2010)

This article discusses the expected voter turnout in the upcoming elections in Australia. In 2007, 453,600 Australians did not vote (and 59,000 were fined), while 510,000 left their ballot blank ("informal vote"). In the upcoming elections, 1 million people are expected to shun the election, and this will greatly influence the outcome: every vote will count. The major reason for invalid votes is believed to be the language barrier.

Reuter poll trend: Australia's Gillard holds slim election lead, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the final days of the electoral campaign in Australia. A Reuters Poll Trend showed that Julia Gillard, Labor Party candidate, is leading the competition by a very small margin (51.5%), and Tony Abbot, Liberal-National party leader, is staying behind (48.5%).

Australia: Teens return Labor to power in Google poll, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article reports on the results of a simulated federal election between 9-12 August. Google set up a 'youth election' portal ("Google Student Voice 2010 election) and allowed teenagers to have their say. Julia Gillard won the virtual elections.

Explainer: Australian elections 2010, CNN (2010)

This article briefly introduces the Australian political and electoral system, and then discusses the main issues in the upcoming elections. Julia Gillard is running against with Tony Abbot, and experts believe that the winner will have only a slim majority of votes. The main election issues are the economy and the legislation for asylum seekers.

Australian election: breakthrough forecast for Greens, The Guardian (2010)

This article reports on the latest opinion polls in Australia. The Green Party could win up to 14%, according to the polls, and became an influential group in the Senate. New environmental issues are being raised in the country, and the two candidates did not address it properly yet. The Greens' central message, on the other hand, is action on climate change.

Australia PM delivers final speech for elections, The People's Daily (2010)

This article reports on the final days of the electoral campaign in Australia. Julia Gillard, current Prime Minister and leader of the Labor Party, finalized and announced her final electoral programme. Australia's general elections will be on Saturday, August 21st.

Australia: Over 1.8 million votes already cast, ABC News (2010)

This article reports on the voting operations in Australia. The Australian Electoral Commission reported that 1.8 million voters already cast their vote, via mail or in pre-polling centres. The commission added that this is an impressive number of voters, 230,000 more than in the last election, and that also the overall number of voters has increased: more than 11 million citizens are expected to cast their ballots tomorrow.

Photo finish for Aussie election, Mail & Guardian (2010)

This article reports on the final day of the electoral campaign in Australia. Julia Gillard, the country's first women Prime Minister and leader of the Labor Party, appear to be the frontrunner, on the other hand, Tony Abbot appears self-confident and determined to win. Experts predict a tight race.

Australians vote 'neither' in weekend polls, TIME (2010)

This article discusses the latest updates from the Australian elections. As vote counting is under way, the two major parties started coalition talks with the smaller party. As a matter of fact, it appears that the results will be very close and no party will a majority in the parliament. In these elections, Australia's first indigenous MP will likely win a seat in the parliament, as well as the youngest MP in the country's history (a 20-year-old from Queensland).

Australian elections in the balance, The Telegraph (2010)

This article reports on the vote counting operations in Australia and discusses the first initial results. Julia Gillard, leader of the Australian Labor Party, apparently failed to gain the expected majority, and now the Green Party will hold the balance of power.

Australia: Labor, Liberals locked at 73 seats each in latest election count, The Herald Sun (2010)

This article reports on the vote counting in Australia. The first results show that both parties won 73 seats in the 150-member parliament, but 76 seats are required to form a government on their own. Electoral officials believe that it will take days (even weeks) to finalize the results. 4500 postal votes are still uncounted, and a recount is currently under way.

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Australia: Poll paints green picture for garden state, ABC News (2010)

This article discusses the results of the elections in Australia. A minority government is likely to be formed, as the initial results show that no party won a majority of the seats in the parliament. The Green Party appears to be the real winner. For example, the Greens won the federal seat of Melbourne, traditionally the Labor Party heathland.

Australia: Our options are open, say Greens, The Age (2010)

This article discusses the coalition negotiation in Australia. The elections produced what appear to be a hung parliament, as neither of the two main parties gained the majority of the seats. The only winner is the Green Party, which can now control the balance of power in the parliament.

What does the election result mean for Australia's politics? Xinhua (2010)

This article comments the results of the August 21 Australian elections. Neither the Labor, nor the Coalition, won a majority of the seats and the country will now have a hung parliament, the first in 70 years. Coalition talks are currently being held with the minor parties, mostly with the Greens.

Australia: Anxious wait for voters' stamp of approval, The Australian (2010)

This article reports on the vote counting operations in Australia. The Australian Electoral Commission announced that the results of the postal votes will arrive only on September 3rd. Neither of the two major parties was able to win the majority of the seats, and maybe the postal votes could make a difference. Generally, postal votes favour the center-right Coalition.

Australia opposition says doesn't want new election, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on Tony Abbot's response to accusations that he would prefer new elections to negotiations with independent parties and the Greens. Mr Abbot, leader of the opposition, denied all accusations.

No new government in Australia as election impasse drags on, VOA News (2010)

This article reports on the political situation in Australia. After last week's elections produced an hung parliament, political parties are holding coalition talks unsuccessfully. Experts believe that if the two major parties, the Labor and the opposition, will not reach an agreement with the Green Party lawmaker and the four independents, the country will have to hold new elections.

Australia PM rejects fresh election call, The Wall Street Journal (2010)

This article reports on the Australian Prime Minister's statement against early elections. As a matter of fact, despite the hung parliament, PM Julia Gillard rejected the idea to call early elections. Ms Gillard's Labor party and the opposition Liberal-National coalition are currently holding meetings with independent lawmakers, in order to form a government coalition.

Australia: ALP revives push to reveal political donors, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article discusses the Labor party's decision to disclose all political donors, as promised in the campaign. The Labor party made a pact with the Greens (signed yesterday), who will also release a list of their political donors, in order to promote reforms to campaign finance regulations. The Labor party would reduce the donation disclosure threshold (to $1,000), ban foreign donations, and limit anonymous ones over $50. The Labor would create a "truth in advertising" provision in the electoral act, and start a parliamentary inquiry on this issue.

Australia election impasse expected to end Tuesday, Reuters (2010)

This article reports on the possible end of the election impasse in Australia. Weeks after the August 21 elections, the Labor Party announced that they will probably form a minority government with three independents.

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Australia: Early election not necessary: Bligh, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article reports on the discussions on whether or not to hold multiple elections in 2012. In Queensland, council and state elections are scheduled for the same year, but Premier Anna Bligh stated that this will not be a problem, and the state will not allow mayors to extend their terms.

Australia: Voters see tough 2011 for Labor, The Sydney Morning Herald (2010)

This article reports on a recent opinion poll in Australia. The poll suggested that Julia Gillard and the Labor Party will face a tough 2011, as their popularity seem to fade. According to this survey, 45% of the people supports Ms Gillard, while only 34% support the opposition leader Tony Abbott.

Australian Labor Party loses ground since last general election, Focus News (2010)

This article discusses the results of the latest opinion poll in Australia. The Labor party appear to have lost ground since the August 21st elections, and it would lose an early elections if held today.

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Australia: Abbott carbon coats next election campaign, The Sydney Morning Herald (2011)

This article reports on the 2013 elections in Australia. According to Tony Abbot, opposition leader, the issue of the carbon tax will be fundamental in the upcoming election campaign.

Australia: NSW panel to look at recall elections, The Sydney Morning Herald (2011)

The article reports that NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell is heading an attempt to incorporate the introduction of recall elections into existing Australian electoral laws. He has appointed an expert panel that includes constitutional experts to review the possibility of realizing this piece of electoral form.