Angus Taylor faces leadership test in Farrer byelection as independent vows to ‘finish what we started’ and oust Liberals

Nino Bucci

14 February 2026

It will be the fifth byelection in three years and the second in succession brought about by the retirement of a former Liberal leader, after Scott Morrison’s retirement from Cook in 2024. Election analyst Antony Green suspects it could be a messy contest. Farrer is bordered by Nationals-held seats and the Victorian seat of Indi, held by the independent Helen Haines.

Want to know what’s really going on in Australian politics? A four-way tussle in Farrer may tell us

John Hawkins

16 February 2026

There looks to be a four-way contest in the soon-to-be-held byelection in Farrar after the resignation of Sussan Ley. In the last election the Community Independent candidate, Michelle Millthorpe, picked up a primary vote of 20% and after preferences ended up in the TCP race with 44% to Ley’s 56%. Can she win it this time? With a ON candidate as well as a National and a Liberal candidate it will be a tough race.

Brave reform remains in the too hard basket for both major parties and I suspect that won’t be enough for struggling Australians. In that, One Nation’s rise is a threat to us all

Zoe Daniel

8 February 2026

With the internal squabbling of the Coalition and while Labor “tinkers at the edges”, One Nation is filling the vacuum. “Those who call themselves moderates (in the Liberal Party) are that in name only. They vote along party lines, and I see no evidence that they’ve actively tried to change them. People like me and the other independents stepped forward as an alternative because of this. The so-called moderates have gone with the flow, to the populist right.”

Travel entitlements for MPs’ families will be wound back on advice of expenses watchdog, Anthony Albanese says

Krishani Dhanji and Josh Butler

23 December 2025

After several MPs were forced to defend their use of travel expenses, the prime minister has announced travel entitlements for the families of parliamentarians will be wound back, after the government sought advice from the expenses watchdog. Under the new rules, parliamentarians will be limited to claiming travel expenses for their partners to travel between their home and Canberra, and to travel within their electorate if an MP, or their state if a senator.

New behaviour standards are in place for parliament but crossbenchers say question time still rife with bullying

Sarah Basford Canales

30 November 2025

Independent MP Zali Steggall says it’s not always clear who is behind disorderly behaviour – and sometimes it can be a whole section of a political party.

Millennials are the first generation to move left as they age, rewriting the rules of Australian politics

Isabella Higgins

27 November 2025

Millennials are defying the long-held wisdom that voters often become more conservative as they age, and are, in fact, becoming more progressive as they mature.

Ditching net zero abandons Aussie farmers like me

Glenn Morris

25 November 2025

Who do the political parties really represent? And what are the effects of parties and the government not doing enough about climate change for agriculture, nature and our future?

'Feral Senate': How voters keep the government on its toes

Annabel Crabb

23 November 2025

This article is based on the series “Civic Duty” available on ABC iView.

Australians usually vote for one major party in the house of representatives but for other parties in the senate. This has served to give us checks and balances on government power. While originally envisaged to balance power between the states, it has become a power balance between the parties. The rise of the independents and the cross bench, and the demise of the two-party duopoly is discussed.

The Liberal Party has finally backed women leaders. Is it genuine renewal or a glass cliff?

Dr Blair Williams

21 November

While Sussan Ley manages to hold on to the Federal Liberal Party leadership, Jess Wilson became the first female liberal leader in Victoria and Kellie Sloane became the next female leader of the NSW Liberals. Female representation more broadly is still an issue. Additionally, the election of these women leaders during the most unstable period of the party aligns with the “glass cliff” scenario. This phrase refers to the frequency with which women break the glass ceiling to gain leadership positions during times of crisis, while men tend to wait for calmer waters.

Can we tackle climate change without net zero? Here's what it really means

Jo Lauder

This is an explainer article about what Net Zero actually means. Achieving net zero is required to prevent ongoing global warming. The earlier we reach net zero the lower the increase in temperatures above pre-industrial levels will be.

After teal wave of 2022, there was no ‘sophomore surge’. Where to from here for the independents?

Tory Shepherd

Simon Holmes à Court says that Community Independents are here to stay. A record number of independents have come within striding distance of a win. The onward march of the independents, though, could be hobbled by electoral funding laws that the two major parties joined together to pass in February.

Independents will not help form government – but they will be vital in holding it to account

Joshua Black

There will likely be new faces in the cross bench after this historic election, one in which the government grew its primary vote and the number of seats it holds.

Elections are no longer a binary contest – independents of all persuasions make for a noisier political discourse

Peter Lewis

Polling data from this week’s Guardian Essential Report shows that votes for ‘third party’ candidates (Greens, minor parties and independents) are higher than votes for either of the two major parties. This makes power-sharing governments a likely result in the years ahead.