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Section One: An Election is Called - Part One

Narration:

Not every country chooses its government by election. So not every government has to “go to the people” by an agreed date, to determine who will lead the country.

In Australia, governments are chosen by election – the Commonwealth government is elected for a term of not more than three years so, at the end of that term, the Prime Minister must announce the date for an election at which voters will decide who will be their representatives in the Federal Parliament for the next three years.

Questions:

What other methods are there for deciding on a leader – whether of a country or anything else? What might happen if teachers, or parents, were chosen by election!

The PM thanks the Australian public for electing him – but does the public elect the Prime Minister? Individual voters elect individual representatives, the party or coalition with the majority of representatives forms the government; this party or coalition of parties elects a leader who is called the Prime Minister.

Why does Australia have a Federal system?

Sometimes an election is called early – what circumstances could trigger this in Australia? Rejection of government bills in the Senate can provide the trigger, so, of course, can the dismissal of a government by the Governor General.

Australia has three tiers of government, Federal is the first level and the subject of this video; the second level is state and territory government, and the third level is local government. See AEC Education Resource ‘Australian Democracy Magazine’ All are determined by election, but there are variations.

What happens in your state, territory or local government area?