Greetings,
Australia has just voted for 2019, and the results are in and they are not what some people wanted. So as a result there is a lot of throwing around of blame as to whose fault it is. Several people who I have seen on Facebook and other media have been blaming the result on Queensland, due to its some what conservative nature, hence its backing for One Nation and other conservative parties. To this there are somethings that need to be set straight.
First and foremost, where I live in Rankin, the Labor candidate is being returned, so it was not my electorate who can be blamed for this mess. So the fingers can stop being pointed in this direction for a start.
Next, we have a look at some numbers, there are 151 electorates in Australia, 30 of these are in Queensland, it is a fifth of the electorates. What about the rest of the country? What about the other states? There are more electorates in Victoria and New South Wales. To gain what it required the Labour-National Party would require more than just Queensland. The evidence points to them getting it too (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-19/federal-election-map-coalition-defies-polls-retains-power/11127084?section=politics).
So before everyone tries to go blaming one state for the failure of an election maybe they should look at home first for the blame, if any blame should be leveled at all. Clearly the Coalition ran a better campaign than did Labor and other parties. What now?
My question for all those people who don't like it is, what are you going to do about it? When these politicians do something you don't like, what are you going to do about it? Just sit there and complain? When was the last time you wrote to your local Minister or Shadow Minister? When was the last time you marched? Australia is generally politically apathetic, and our politicians know it. This is the reason why the know they can get away with what they do. If you think that the vote is your only power then you are underestimating yourself.
Cheers,
Henry.
