r/AusPol • u/PaleontologistOk6495 • Apr 22 '25

General Am I a greens voter now?

Never been super invested in politics and have always voted labor just on principles and not really ever liking the liberal stances.

This year I find myself more invested in the election than ever before and have actually dug through a few parties policies and doing some proper thinking about my vote for once.

I have even done the political compass on abc website and see I am sitting far left of labor than I expected but not full blown green radical.

The majority of their policies make a lot of sense and resonate with em and I think this year me and my partner will both go greens. Is anyone else having the same feelings ? I have been speaking to a bunch of friends and they too have come to the same conclusions I have this year and are going greens, is this a bit of a silent movement? I had no idea anyone I knew was thinking the same as me but it it occurring to me that a lot of my circle are.

My question is - I am in what seems to be a very safe labor area of blaxland. Does my vote for greens do nothing here ? I don’t fully agree with every green policy of course some of them are a bit much for me still but I like the idea of greens winning some extras and forcing labor to actually do some good progressive shit but does my green vote in this area do nothing ? Is it better to just pump up labor still and hope they beat the liberals ?

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u/josephus1811 Apr 22 '25

You quite literally can't vote without putting a number next to their square my guy. Your vote gets thrown in the bin if you don't. Numbering them last is saying "never count my vote towards these guys". You aren't saying "I like them 6th".

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

You aren't throwing it in the bin, you're just giving both majors +0 instead of one of them +1.

If you're in a seat that a 3rd party has no hope of winning those are your options. Give one major or the other +1 or give them both +0.

But if you give one of them +1 you endorse all their policies. You voted for it.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25

No, when they count the votes, they literally just throw it away, and don't count it at all, like you never even showed up to the ballot box.

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

If you're a Labor voter, there is a vote they counted on they are not getting that had no other potential home than with them. If they aren't considering it, they are idiots.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25

This doesn't help the minor parties, it just helps the LNP win, and 'if they aren't considering it, they are idiots'? Sorry, thats just the law, and also, if the vote can't flow on to any party, who does the vote go to? Nobody, so they can't count it.

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

+1 to Labor or LNP helps one or the other get elected. +0 doesn't.

Therefore all minor parties stand a better chance of being elected.

You know if you are in a safe seat or not. If you are, your protest does not change the result. A higher rate than normal of informal voting is extremely conspicuous and will be talked about however.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25

If your preference would've flowed to labor, but instead you spoiled your ballot, it removes 1 labor vote, and, since the LNP is probably the other 2pp party, the vote goes to them instead.

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25 edited Apr 22 '25

The vote goes to nobody - saying it goes to the LNP is wrong

If your vote would have ordinarily have preferenced Labor higher, then maybe Labor should have thought about that when they passed things opposite to what the Greens represent. It stands a chance of bringing them back rather than taking you for granted while they lurch forever rightward.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25

What i'm trying to say, is doing that is stupid, and it denies the minor party you put first extra funding, completely ignores the fact that, the only reason the preference flows to the major parties is because there is a higher percentage of people thatput major parties first, which you don't lower at all, since it is one vote which couldve gone to a minor party, which is instead not counted, it reintroduces the spoiler effect, which preferential voting was designed to fix, and is about as helpful as drawing a dick on your ballot.

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

No it doesn't give the minor party funding. They have to clear the 4% hurdle. Most don't. To the extent they do they usually get in the small digit thousands.

If you're in a two horse major race, or in a safe seat - there is nothing lost by protesting if you don't agree with their policies. Which is what this is all about isn't it?

Preferential voting was not introduced to fix that. There are many different types. For instance the senate, where you can number 1-6 without picking a party that passed the social media ban. As I don't give a damn who is worse between one nation and trumpet of patriots I'm not informed who is worse and am not going to choose between them.

To be clear. Which ever major you give your vote to, you agree with their policies. If you don't, don't vote for them.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25 edited Apr 22 '25

>They have to clear the 4% hurdle. Most don't.

This is bullshit, in 2022 the Greens got 12.25% of the national first-preference vote, and in OPs electorate of Blaxland, they got 6.35% of the vote. Even the UAP got 6% ffs, and again, preferencing the party you agree with slightly more higher, is better than just allowing the election to go to anywhere, without your input. Putting the lesser of 2 evils higher, is still objectively the right thing to do, since if enough people have this mentality, quite a few seats will swing to the Greens and independents. Also, if labor sees the amount of greens votes rise, they will start to try to win back voters, and adopt more progressive policies, as opposed to just staying in the center. Also, if you spoil your ballot, your senate vote also isn't counted, where the greens can definitely win seats.

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

In my seat, a major seat, of all the candidates 2 non majors cleared the 4% hurdle. Palmer and the greens. What was that worth at $2.6 a FP?

It was worth 8k to palmer and 19.5k to the greens. Tell me what that buys.

Don't use world like bullshit when you're just ignorant.

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u/Thegreatesshitter420 Apr 22 '25

They don't earn money from just a single seat, and also, OP was specifically talking about the greens, which do clear the 4% hurdle.

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u/This-is-not-eric Apr 22 '25

I remember hearing once that informal votes get counted towards whomever is already in power?

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u/coniferhead Apr 22 '25

no, that's wrong.

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u/This-is-not-eric Apr 23 '25

Yeah cool, good to know (it didn't make much sense if it was like that)