In just a few days from now, Australians will be able to start lodging their votes for the upcoming Federal Election. And on May 3 the rest of eligible voters will cast their ballots. For many Australians, all this is just a ho-hum affair to be gotten over with as quickly as possible. They have no real interest in politics, and care little – and know little – about who is even running, and what the various party positions are on key issues.
And some others have become all rather jaded by the whole two-party political process. For many voters it is a matter of twiddle dum or twiddle dee. They see no real difference between the two main parties, and they are therefore not all that excited about the outcome: they think nothing will really change, so why even bother? I will speak further to this matter in a moment.
General considerations
Having now lived in Australia for over 35 years, I have been involved in and commented on a lot of political matters and numerous elections – both state and federal. My particular stance is bounded by my Christian faith first and foremost, and then by my more or less conservative take on political, social and cultural issues.
After a while all I can do is repeat some core truths over and over again, such as the following: Jesus Christ ultimately transcends mere partisan politics; no one party will ever fully represent the Christian and conservative values I adhere to; some parties and policies will be a bit better than others; and in a fallen world we will never fully get the sorts of outcomes we are looking for.
One general outcome that many folks would at least in theory aim for – peace on earth and goodwill toward men (Luke 2:14) – of course can only be realised when Christ returns. Yet we are called to be salt and light in this needy and dark world (Matthew 5:13-16), and we are told to pray that His Kingdom comes, and his will be done, on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).
So that must include being somewhat involved in the world of politics. At the very least, it means the believer must carefully and prayerfully assess the main parties, and perhaps know something about the smaller parties, independents, and so on, before they cast their vote.
And for the concerned Christian voter, there are various options as to learning about where most of the bigger parties stand on a whole range of issues. The Australian Christian Lobby for example tries to offer a detailed look at various matters and where different parties stand on them. See what they have on offer here: https://australiavotes.org.au/
Curiously, if you look at the 18 policy issues of both Labor and Liberal, nothing is said directly about abortion! Whether or not this particular issue is now being debated or discussed, a group like the ACL should ALWAYS have it as a key issue, even if nothing has changed in terms of the main parties. The sanctity of life for the unborn should always be on the agenda of all Christians.
One group I am involved in – and have been for some 25 years now – is the outfit that releases the Christian Values Checklist for state and federal elections. This is part is how they discuss their rationale:
Our goal has been to do a careful bipartisan evaluation of the major parties positions on matters relating to Christian values and present it in a readable, impartial and accurate form to help Australian voters make an informed choice when voting. It might be noted that the political world is inhabited by spin doctors and clever PR gurus. Many times the true goals and voting patterns of the political parties are deliberately obfuscated to avoid polarising the electorate. Generally speaking, it is the goal of the major parties to reveal as little as possible of their specific policy so that votes are not lost before the party in question is elected. That is why much political rhetoric is very general and avoids particular issues, including moral, ethical, social and sexual integrity matters that are of deep concern to bible-believing Christians.
For next month’s election there are actually three forms of the checklist. All of them feature the same 20 questions, covering a number of issues. And all of them have eight main political groups. Here is how the three lists break down:
NSW, VIC, SA, TAS, ACT, and the NT
Family First, One Nation, Trumpet of Patriots, National, Liberal, Labor, Teals, Greens
Queensland
Family First, Katter’s People First, One Nation, Trumpet of Patriots, LNP, Labor, Teals, Greens
WA
Australian Christians, One Nation, Trumpet of Patriots, National, Liberal, Labor, Teals, Greens
If you look at the checklists, you will see those on the left side of the checklist are the most conservative and/or Christian, while the further to the right you go, the more leftist and non- or anti-Christian they are. See the three lists here: https://christianvalues.org.au/checklists/current-elections/
On the two-party system
As mentioned, many folks are getting all rather tired of the two main choices. For an increasing number of voters, Labor and Liberal seem to be just two sides of the same coin, with very little to choose between them. At the very least, many view the Libs as Labor-lite.
‘Yes and no’ is my take on this. Yes, in so many areas the two parties do seem to be indistinguishable. Certainly for so many of the things most conservatives and Christians care about – the culture wars, the woke and DEI agendas, freedom of speech, the life issues, and so on – the Libs seem to keep letting us down.
Let me interject here with a media story that appeared hours ago. The Herald Sun just had a story with this headline: “Liberals to move on Moira”. The story begins: “Liberal operatives are plotting to end the political career of defamed MP Moira Deeming in a move set to reignite a major factional party war.”
Good grief, what complete and utter idiots these Libs are. Deeming is not only one of the best Libs there is, but her solid support of women and children, family and life, and so many crucial issues makes her a star member. But loony lefty Libs wanna dump her yet again!
Some might say, ‘Yeah, but that is a state matter.” Um, with a very close and very tight federal election now upon us, the fool Libs in Victoria are simply making things even harder for the federal Libs. I repeat, they are idjuts! If they had half a brain, they would have at least waited with this insanity until AFTER the federal election.
And recall that before Moira, we had the pro-life and pro-family conservative champion Bernie Finn in the State Liberal Party. He too was given the boot. What the heck is wrong with Victorian Liberals? Anyway, he is now running for a Senate seat in this federal election with the Family First Party.
But getting back to Labor vs Liberal: while there are too many similarities, there still are SOME differences. Generally speaking the Libs do better on the economy, including being concerned about the national debt, the fate of small business, balancing the budget, and so on.
Dutton however must be much better on related matters, such as ditching Net Zero, renewal energy dependency and the like. These scams will do nothing for the environment, but they will bankrupt Australia. This and some of the moral and cultural issues are where he can really distinguish himself from Albo. But will he?
At the end of the day, this is something we can count on: By May 3 – or 4 or 5 or whenever most of the counting is finalised – we will either have Labor back in, perhaps as a minority government, or we will have the Libs in, also perhaps as a minority government.
If it is Labor, we know it will be a Bandt-Albanese regime. The hardcore communist Greens will really end up calling the shots. That will be even more disastrous for the nation than things now stand. And do not forget that the Teals are not just Labor in disguise, but really Greens in disguise. Avoid them like the plague.
If the Libs get in, with the help of some independents and smaller pro-family and pro-faith parties, especially in the Senate, they might have a bit of hope of getting some worthwhile things done. We cannot expect too much from them, but they should be somewhat better than Labor on some issues.
Am I thrilled about either of the two main parties? No. But I do understand this: in a fallen world we will seldom have a choice between a terrific, top-notch, and near-perfect party, and an utterly terrible and destructive party (although the Greens are just about there!). Often it is a choice between a so-so conservative party which is a real mixed bag, and a much worse leftist party which will simply continue its reign of error.
So for those disillusioned Christian or conservative voters who are thinking of somehow sitting this one out, or voting informally, and so on, think again. In a few weeks’ time we will either have some sort of conservative government in, with all its faults, but with at least some really good MPs among them, or we will have a Greens-Labor government in, further destroying what is left of Australia.
Of those two less than ideal options, I know which one I will go for. Please vote carefully and prayerfully.
This is the beauty of the preferential voting system. You can indicate what you really want without losing your vote for whichever of the major players you would prefer. This is why we have numbers and not just ticks or crosses and this is even more important when voting for the Senate. There is simply no reason not to show your real preference in how you number the candidates.
Many people have said over the last two hundred years or more that democracy is a system wholly unsuitable for an immoral people and unfortunately, Australia has demonstrated over the last few decades that this is definitely correct. There is nothing I can see in the major parties platforms which will remotely halt the malaise.
Thank you Bill for this article…very helpful.
Thanks Jeremy.
Hi Bill!
Great article. Here is another source, showing the contempt shown to both Australians (in general) and Christians (in particular). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VknaLWk13Q
This is the beauty of the preferential voting system. You can indicate what you really want without losing your vote for whichever of the major players you would prefer. This is why we have numbers and not just ticks or crosses and this is even more important when voting for the Senate. There is simply no reason not to show your real preference in how you number the candidates.
Many people have said over the last two hundred years or more that democracy is a system wholly unsuitable for an immoral people and unfortunately, Australia has demonstrated over the last few decades that this is definitely correct. There is nothing I can see in the major parties platforms which will remotely halt the malaise.
Thank you Bill for this article…very helpful.
Thanks Jeremy.
Hi Bill!
Great article. Here is another source, showing the contempt shown to both Australians (in general) and Christians (in particular). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VknaLWk13Q