Liberal Party of Australia

This article is about the modern Australian political party. For the Australian Liberal party active from 1909 to 1916, see Commonwealth Liberal Party. Liberal Party of Australia Leader Tony Abbott MP President Alan Stockdale Deputy Leader Julie Bishop MP Founded 1944 Headquarters Cnr Blackall & Macquarie St Barton ACT 2600 Ideology Conservative liberalism, Liberal conservatism, New Right Political position Centre-right International affiliation International Democrat Union Official colours Blue   House of Representatives 44 / 150 Senate 32 / 76 Website http://www.liberal.org.au/ Politics of Australia Political parties Elections The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party. Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office. Federally, the Liberal Party runs in a Coalition with the National Party (formerly the Country Party), and more recently with the Country Liberal Party (in the Northern Territory) and the Liberal National Party of Queensland. Except for a few short periods, the Coalition has been in existence for almost a century. In federal politics, the Liberal Party has been in opposition since the Howard Government lost the 2007 federal election, having previously held power since the 1996 election. At the state and territory level, Colin Barnett has been Premier of Western Australia since 2008 and Ted Ballieu has been Premier of Victoria since 2010. The party is in opposition in the six other states and territories. Since the Liberal Party of Australia leadership election of 2009, the federal leader of the party has been Tony Abbott, with Julie Bishop as deputy. Abbott and Bishop retained their party leadership positions after the 2010 election. Contents 1 Philosophies and factionalism 2 History 2.1 Menzies to McMahon 2.2 1970s to the present 2.3 Liberal/National merger in Queensland 3 Liberal federal leaders 4 Liberal federal deputy leaders 5 Current Liberal state and territory parliamentary leaders 6 Past Liberal state premiers and territory chief ministers 7 Liberal federal presidents 8 See also 9 Further reading 10 References 11 External links Philosophies and factionalism Modern Liberalism in Australia is represented in the vast majority by the Liberal Party of Australia, who are generally an advocate of economic liberalism (see New Right). However, during Liberal governments prior to the Howard Government, the party was quite interventionist in its economic policy and maintained Australia's high tariff levels. At that time, the Liberals' coalition partner, the Country Party, the older of the two in the coalition (now known as the "National Party"), had considerable influence over the government's economic policies. The Liberal Party has more recently been a conservative party, although it has always had a social liberal wing. In recent years, during the prime-ministership of John Howard, the party moved to a more socially conservative policy agenda. The party has mainly two unorganised factions, the majority conservative right and the minority moderate left. Historically, moderates have at times formed their own parties, most notably the Australian Democrats who gave voice to what is termed small-l liberalism in Australia. Towards the end of his term as Prime Minister of Australia, in a last address to the Liberal Party Federal Council in 1964, Party founder, and longest serving leader Robert Menzies spoke of the "Liberal Creed" as follows: “ As the etymology of our name ‘Liberal’ indicates, we have stood for freedom. We have realised that men and women are not just ciphers in a calculation, but are individual human beings whose individual welfare and development must be the main concern of government … We have learned that the right answer is to set the individual free, to aim at equality of opportunity, to protect the individual against oppression, to create a society in which rights and duties are recognized and made effective." 1 ” Soon after the election of the Howard Government, the second longest serving Liberal Prime Minister, John Howard, spoke of his interpretation of the "Liberal Tradition" in a Robert Menzies Lecture in 1996: “ Menzies knew the importance for Australian Liberalism to draw upon both the classical liberal as well as the conservative political traditions. … He believed in a liberal political tradition that encompassed both Edmund Burke and John Stuart Mill – a tradition which I have described in contemporary terms as the broad church of Australian Liberalism.”2 ” The Liberal Party is a member of the International Democrat Union, the only party name of Liberal to do so, rather than Liberal International. Strong opposition to socialism and communism in Australia and internationally was one of the foundation principles of the Liberal Party. History Tony Abbott, Leader of the Liberal Party since 2009. Sir Robert Menzies, founder of the Liberal Party of Australia and Prime Minister of Australia 1939–41 (UAP) and 1949–66 Harold Holt, Prime Minister of Australia 1966–67 Sir John Gorton, Prime Minister of Australia 1968–71 Sir William McMahon, Prime Minister of Australia 1971–72 Malcolm Fraser, Prime Minister of Australia 1975–83 John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia 1996–2007 Menzies to McMahon The Liberals' immediate predecessor was the United Australia Party, formed in 1931. The UAP, led by Billy Hughes, disintegrated after suffering a heavy defeat in the 1943 election. More broadly, the party's ideological ancestry stretched back to the anti-Labor groupings in the first Commonwealth parliaments. The Commonwealth Liberal Party was a fusion of the Free Trade Party and the Protectionist Party in 1909 by the second prime minister, Alfred Deakin, in response to Labor's growing electoral prominence. The Commonwealth Liberal Party merged with several Labor dissidents (including Hughes) to form the Nationalist Party of Australia in 1917. That party, in turn, merged with Labor dissidents to form the UAP in 1931. Menzies called a conference of conservative parties and other groups opposed to the ruling Australian Labor Party which met in Canberra on 13 October 1944, and again in Albury in December 1944.34 The formation of the party was formally announced at Sydney Town Hall on 31 August 1945.4 It took the name "Liberal" in honour of the old Commonwealth Liberal Party. The new party was dominated by the remains of the old UAP. The Australian Women's National League, a powerful conservative women's organisation, also merged with the new party. A conservative youth group Menzies had set up, the Young Nationalists, was also merged into the new party. It became the Liberal Party's youth division, the Young Liberals. By September 1945 there were more than 90,000 members, many of whom had not previously been members of any political party.4 After an initial loss to Labor at the 1946 election, Menzies led the Liberals to victory at the 1949 election, and stayed in office for a record 23 years. Australia experienced a prolonged economic boom during the Menzies years. In 1949, the Liberals appointed Dame Enid Lyons as the first woman to serve in an Australian Cabinet. Menzies remained a staunch supporter of links to the monarchy and British Commonwealth but formalised an alliance with the United States and launched post-war trade with Japan, beginning a growth of Australian exports of coal, iron ore and mineral resources that would steadily climb until Japan became Australia's largest trading partner. Menzies was firmly anti-Communist and committed troops to the Korean War and attempted to ban the Communist Party of Australia during the course of the war. The Labor Party split over concerns about the influence of the Communist Party over the Trade Union movement, leading to the foundation of the breakaway Democratic Labor Party(DLP) whose preferences supported the Liberal and Country Party5 Menzies continued the multi-national immigration program established under Chifley, and began dismantling the unofficial White Australia Policy in 1958, by replacing the Immigration Act's arbitrarily applied European language dictation test with an entry permit system, that reflected economic and skills criteria.67 In 1962, Menzies' Commonwealth Electoral Act provided that all Indigenous Australians should have the right to enrol and vote at federal elections (prior to this, indigenous people in Queensland, Western Australia and some in the Northern Territory had been excluded from voting unless they were ex-servicemen).8 Harold Holt replaced the retiring Robert Menzies in 1966 and the Liberal-Country Party went on to win 82 seats to Labor's 21 in the 1966 Election.9 Holt remained Prime Minister until 19 December 1967, at which time he disapperaed after entering rough surf for a swim. Holt increased Australian commitment to the growing War in Vietnam, which met with some public opposition. His government oversaw conversion to decimal currency. Holt faced Britain's withdrawal from Asia by visiting and hosting many Asian leaders and by expanding ties to the United States, hosting the first visit to Australia by an American President, his friend Lyndon Johnson. Holt's government introduced the Migration Act 1966, which effectively dismantled the White Australia Policy and increased access to non-European migrants, including refugees fleeing the Vietnam War. Holt also called the 1967 Referendum which removed the discriminatory clause in the Australian Constitution which excluded Aboriginal Australians from being counted in the census - the referendum was one of the few to be overwhelmingly endorsed by the Australian electorate (over 90% voted 'yes'). By the end of 1967, the Liberals initially popular support for the war in Vietnam was causing increasing public protest.10 The Liberals chose John Gorton to replace Holt. Gorton, a former World War Two RAAF pilot, with a battle scarred face, said he was "Australian to the bootheels" and had a personal style which often affronted some conservatives. As Prime Minister he increased funding for the arts, setting up the Australian Council for the Arts, the Australian Film Development Corporation and the National Film and Television Training School. The Gorton government passed legislation establishing equal pay for men and women and increased pensions, allowances and education scholarships, as well as providing free health care to 250,000 of the nation's poor (but not universal health care). Gorton's government kept Australia in the Vietnam War but stopped replacing troops at the end of 1970.11 Gorton maintained good relations with the United States and Britain, but pursued closer ties with Asia. The Gorton government experienced a decline in voter support at the 1969 elction. State Liberal leaders saw his policies as too Centralist, while other Liberals didn't like his personal behaviour. In 1971, Defence Minister Malcolm Fraser, resigned and said Gorton was "not fit to hold the great office of Prime Minister". The Liberal party split 50/50 over a vote to replace him and he decided not to vote for himself and resigned.12 Former treasurer, William McMahon, replaced Gorton as Prime Minister. Gorton remained a front bencher but relations with Fraser remained strained. McMahon's premiership ended when Gough Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party out of its 23 year period in Opposition at the 1972 Election. McMahon maintained Australia's dminishing commitment to Vietnam. The economy was weakening. McMahon attacked Opposition leader, Gough Whitlam, for visiting Communist China in 1972 - only to have the U.S. President Richard Nixon announce a planned visit soon after.13 Following Whitlam's victory, Gorton played a further role in reform by introducing a Parliamentary motion from Opposition supporting legalisation of homsexuality. When Malcolm Fraser won the Liberal Party leadership in 1975, Gorton walked out of the Party Room.14 1970s to the present After the dismissal of 1975 the Liberals returned to office under Malcolm Fraser, and stayed in power for eight years. Losing government in 1983, the Liberals returned to power in 1996 under John Howard, and governed until their electoral defeat in 2007. At the state level, the Liberals have been dominant for long periods in all states except Queensland, where they have always held fewer seats than the National Party (not to be confused with the old Nationalist Party). The Liberals were in power in Victoria from 1955 to 1982. Initially a Liberal and Country Party affiliated party, the Liberal and Country League reigned in South Australia from 1932 to 1965, though with assistance from the Playmander. The similarly dual aligned Country Liberal Party ruled the Northern Territory from 1972 to 2001. Throughout their history, the Liberals have been in electoral terms largely the party of the middle class (whom Menzies, in the era of the party's formation called "the forgotten people"), though such class-based voting patterns are no longer as clear as they once were. In the 1970s a left-wing middle class emerged that no longer voted Liberal. One effect of this was the success of a breakaway party, the Australian Democrats, founded in 1977 by former Liberal minister Don Chipp and members of minor liberal parties; other members of the left-leaning section of the middle-class became Labor supporters. On the other hand, the Liberals have done increasingly well among socially conservative working-class voters in recent years. In country areas they either compete or have a truce with the Nationals, depending on various factors. Anti-communism was a strong tenet of the early Liberal Party. Menzies came to power the year the Communist Party of Australia had led a coal strike to improve pit miners working conditions in Australia; and the same year that Joseph Stalin's Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb, and that Mao Zedong led the Communist Party of China to power in China; and just a year before the invasion of South Korea by Communist North Korea. By 1955 the Labor Party had split over the issue of Communist influence over certain Unions and anti-communism was successfully exploited through the 1950s and 1960s by Menzies and his political successors (see Democratic Labor Party15). During the Korean War, Menzies went so far as to attempt to ban the Communist Party via unsuccessful 1951 legislation and a subsequently unsuccessful referendum. Menzies was an ardent royalist, devoted to maintaining Australia as a constitutional monarchy. Today the party is divided on the monarchy, with some being minimalist republicans while others, such as Tony Abbott remain monarchists. The Liberals have also sought to portray themselves as the party most committed to the alliance with the United States. Domestically, Menzies presided over a fairly regulated economy in which utilities were publicly owned, and commercial activity was highly regulated through centralised wage-fixing and high tariff protection. It was not until the late 1970s and through their period out of power federally in the 1980s that the party came to be influenced by what was known as the "New Right" – neo-liberal group who advocated market deregulation, privatisation of public utilities, reductions in the size of government programs and tax cuts. This program was largely implemented by the Howard government of 1996–2007. Socially, while liberty and freedom of enterprise form the basis of its beliefs, elements of the party have wavered between what is termed "small-l liberalism" and social conservatism. Historically, Liberal Governments have been responsible for the carriage of a number of notable "socially liberal" reforms, including Harold Holt's 1967 Referendum on Aboriginal Rights;16 Sir John Gorton's establishment of the Australian Council for the Arts and Australian Film Development Corporation;17 selection of the first Aboriginal Senator, Neville Bonner, in 1971;18 Malcolm Fraser's Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976 and John Howard's gun control reform of 1997, which restricted gun ownership.19 West Australian Liberal, Ken Wyatt, became the first Indigenous Australian elected the Australian House of Representatives.20 The Liberal Party's organisation is dominated by the six state divisions, reflecting the party's original commitment to a federalised system of government (a commitment which was strongly maintained by all Liberal governments until 1983, but had been to a large extent abandoned by the Howard government, which had shown strong centralising tendencies). Menzies deliberately created a weak national party machine and strong state divisions. Party policy is made almost entirely by the parliamentary parties, not by the party's rank-and-file members, although Liberal party members do have a degree of influence over party policy. In the 2004 Federal elections the party strengthened its majority in the Lower House and, with its coalition partners, became the first federal government in twenty years to gain an absolute majority in the Senate. This control of both houses permitted their passing of legislation without the need to negotiate with independents or minor parties, exemplified by industrial relations legislation known as WorkChoices. The 2007 federal election saw the defeat of the Howard federal government, and the Liberal Party was in opposition throughout Australia at the state and federal level; the highest Liberal office-holder at the time was Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman. This ended after the Western Australian state election, 2008, when Colin Barnett became Premier of that state. Following the 2007 Federal Election, Dr Brendan Nelson was elected leader by the Parliamentary Liberal Party. On 16 September 2008, in a second contest following a spill motion, Nelson lost the leadership to Malcolm Turnbull.21 On 1 December 2009, a subsequent leadership election saw Turnbull lose the leadership to Tony Abbott by 42 votes to 41 on the second ballot.22 Abbot led the party to the 2010 federal election, which saw an increase in the Liberal Party vote and resulted in the first hung parliament since the 1940 election.23 Through 2010, the party improved its vote in the Tasmanian and South Australian state elections and achieved state government in Victoria. The Liberal Party does not officially contest most local government elections, although many members do run for office in local government as independents. An exception is the Brisbane City Council, where both Sallyanne Atkinson and Campbell Newman (the incumbent) have been elected Lord Mayor of Brisbane.24 Liberal/National merger in Queensland Main article: Liberal/National merger Merger plans came to a head in May 2008, when the Queensland state Liberal Party gave an announcement not to wait for a federal blueprint but instead to merge now. The new party, the Liberal National Party was formed on 26 July following a joint convention of the Queensland Liberal and National parties. However, despite the change of name, the party continues to be the Queensland Division of the Liberal Party of Australia. Liberal federal leaders Shown by default in chronological order of leadership Year Name Term in office Period Time in office 1945 Sir Robert Menzies Prime Minister (UAP 1939–41),1949–66 February 1945-26 January 1966 20y 11m 1966 Harold Holt Prime Minister 1966–67 26 January 1966 – 17 December 1967 01y 10m 23d 1968 Sir John Gorton Prime Minister 1968–71 10 January 1968 – 10 March 1971 03y 02m 1971 Sir William McMahon Prime Minister 1971–72 10 March 1971 – 5 December 1972 01y 08m 1972 Sir Billy Snedden December 1972 – March 1975 02y 03m 1975 Malcolm Fraser Prime Minister 1975–83 March 1975-11 March 1983 08y 00m 1983 Andrew Peacock First term March 1983 – September 1985 02y 06m 1985 John Howard First term September 1985 – May 1989 03y 08m 1989 Andrew Peacock Second term May 1989 – March 1990 00y 10m 1990 John Hewson April 1990 – May 1994 04y 02m 1994 Alexander Downer May 1994 – January 1995 00y 08m 1995 John Howard Prime Minister 1996–2007 30 January 1995 – 29 November 2007 12y 10m 2007 Brendan Nelson 29 November 2007 – 16 September 2008 00y 10m 2008 Malcolm Turnbull 16 September 2008 – 1 December 2009 01y 03m 2009 Tony Abbott 1 December 2009–present Incumbent Liberal federal deputy leaders Shown in chronological order of leadership Year Name Notes 1944 Sir Eric Harrison 1956 Harold Holt Later Prime Minister 1966–67 1966 Sir William McMahon Later Prime Minister 1971–72 1971 Sir John Gorton Previously Prime Minister 1968–71 1971 Sir Billy Snedden Later Leader 1972 Sir Phillip Lynch 1982 John Howard Later Prime Minister 1996-07 1985 Neil Brown 1987 Andrew Peacock Previously & Later Leader 1989 Fred Chaney 1990 Peter Reith 1993 Michael Wooldridge 1994 Peter Costello 2007 Julie Bishop Incumbent Current Liberal state and territory parliamentary leaders State Lower House Seats NSW Parliament 24 / 93 QLD Parliament 34 / 89 SA Parliament 18 / 47 TAS Parliament 10 / 25 VIC Parliament 35 / 88 WA Parliament 24 / 59 State/ Territory Leader Notes ACT Zed Seselja Leader since 2007 NSW Barry O'Farrell Leader since 2007 NT Terry Mills Leader since 2008 1 QLD John-Paul Langbroek Leader since 2009 2 SA Isobel Redmond Leader since 2009 TAS Will Hodgman Leader since 2006 VIC Ted Baillieu Premier of Victoria since December 2010 WA Colin Barnett Premier of Western Australia since 2008 1 The Northern Territory is represented by the Country Liberal Party, which is endorsed as the Territory division of the Liberal Party. 2 Queensland is represented by the Liberal National Party of Queensland, this party is the result of a merger of the Queensland Division of the Liberal Party and the Queensland National Party to contest elections as a single party. Past Liberal state premiers and territory chief ministers Australian Capital Territory Years Trevor Kaine 1989–1991 Kate Carnell 1995–2000 Gary Humphries 2000–2001 New South Wales Years Sir Robert Askin 1965–1975 Thomas Lewis 1975–1976 Sir Eric Willis 1976 Nick Greiner 1988–1992 John Fahey 1992–1995 Queensland Years Sir Gordon Chalk 1968 South Australia Years Richard Layton Butler 1927–1930, 1933–1938 Sir Thomas Playford 1938–1965 Steele Hall 1968–1970 David Tonkin 1979–1982 Dean Brown 1993–1996 John Olsen 1996–2001 Rob Kerin 2001–2002 Tasmania Years Sir Angus Bethune 1969–1972 Robin Gray 1982–1989 Ray Groom 1992–1996 Tony Rundle 1996–1998 Victoria Years Ian MacFarlan 1945 Thomas Hollway 1947–1950 Sir Henry Bolte 1955–1972 Sir Rupert Hamer 1972–1981 Lindsay Thompson 1981–1982 Jeff Kennett 1992–1999 Western Australia Years Sir Ross McLarty 1947–1953 Sir David Brand 1959–1971 Sir Charles Court 1974–1982 Ray O'Connor 1982–1983 Richard Court 1993–2001 Liberal federal presidents Shown in chronological order of presidency 1945 – Sir Malcolm Ritchie (first term) 1947 – Richard Casey, Baron Casey 1950 – Sir Malcolm Ritchie (second term) 1951 – Sir William Anderson 1956 – Lyle Moore 1960 – Sir Philip McBride 1965 – Sir John Pagan 1970 – Sir Robert Southey 1975 – Sir John Atwill 1982 – Dr Jim Forbes 1985 – John Valder 1987 – John Elliott 1990 – Prof Ashley Goldsworthy 1993 – Tony Staley 1999 – Shane Stone 2005 – Chris McDiven 2008 – Alan Stockdale See also Country Liberal Party (Northern Territory) Young Liberal Movement of Australia Liberal conservatism Liberalism in Australia List of political parties in Australia Shadow Cabinet of Australia New South Wales Division of the Liberal Party Further reading Henderson, Gerard (1994). Menzies' Child: The Liberal Party of Australia 1944–1994, Allen and Unwin, Sydney, New South Wales. Jaensch, Dean (1994) The Liberals, Allen and Unwin, Sydney, New South Wales. Nethercote, John (ed.)(2001), Liberalism and the Australian Federation, Federation Press, Annandale, New South Wales. ISBN 1862874026 Simms, Marian (1982) A Liberal Nation: The Liberal Party and Australian Politics, Hale and Iremonger, Sydney, New South Wales. ISBN 086806033X Starr, Graeme (1980) The Liberal Party of Australia: A Documentary History, Drummond/Heinemann, Richmond, Victoria. ISBN 0 85859 223 1 Tiver, P.G. (1978), The Liberal Party. Principles and Performance, Jacaranda, Milton, Queensland. ISBN 0 7016 0996 6 References ^ http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/we-believe-the-liberal-party-and-the-liberal-cause/story-e6frg6zo-1225791120808 ^ http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/we-believe-the-liberal-party-and-the-liberal-cause/story-e6frg6zo-1225791120808 ^ "Formation of the Liberal Party of Australia". Party History. Liberal Party of Australia – Queensland Division. Archived from the original on 26 April 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070426002837/http://www.qld.liberal.org.au/history/formation.aspx. Retrieved 11 April 2007.  ^ a b c Ian Hancock. "The Origins of the Modern Liberal Party". Harold White Fellowships. National Library of Australia. http://www.nla.gov.au/grants/haroldwhite/papers/ihancock.html. Retrieved 11 April 2007.  ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/30/2886680.htm?site=thedrum ^ Jan Bassett (1986) p.273 ^ Frank Crowley p.358 ^ http://aec.gov.au/Voting/indigenous_vote/indigenous.htm ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/elections.aspx ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/in-office.aspx ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/gorton/in-office.aspx ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/gorton/in-office.aspx ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/mcmahon/in-office.aspx ^ http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/gorton/after-office.aspx ^ "Bob Santamaria – Interview Transcript tape 3". Australianbiography.gov.au. http://www.australianbiography.gov.au/subjects/santamaria/interview3.html. Retrieved 27 April 2010.  ^ "Fact sheets – National Archives of Australia". Naa.gov.au. 27 May 1967. http://www.naa.gov.au/about-us/publications/fact-sheets/fs150.aspx. Retrieved 27 April 2010.  ^ "Chronology 1960s – ASO". Australianscreen.com.au. http://australianscreen.com.au/chronology/1960s/. Retrieved 27 April 2010.  ^ "ABC News Obituary – Neville Bonner". Abc.net.au. http://www.abc.net.au/news/features/obits/bonner/bonner_bio.htm. Retrieved 27 April 2010.  ^ "National Firearms Program Implementation Bill 1997 (1997–98 Bills Digest 48)". Aph.gov.au. http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/bd/1997-98/98bd048.htm. Retrieved 27 April 2010.  ^ "Ken Wyatt | Hasluck". Smh.com.au. 2010-08-23. http://www.smh.com.au/federal-election/wyatt-likes-the-odd-but-keeping-his-cards-close-in-hasluck-20100822-13az1.html. Retrieved 2011-02-01.  ^ Hudson, Phillip (16 September 2008). "Get behind Turnbull: Nelson tells Libs". Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/09/16/1221330800745.html. Retrieved 16 February 2009.  ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/12/01/2758221.htm Shock win for Abbott in leadership vote, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 1 December 2009. ^ "Voters leave Australia hanging" ABC News, 21 August 2010 ^ "The Poll Vault: Can do Campbell now the Libs man". http://blogs.abc.net.au/thepollvault/2007/11/can-do-campbell.html.  External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Liberal Party of Australia Liberal Party of Australia official site Liberal Party of Australia ephemera digitised and held by the National Library of Australia Records of the Victorian division of the Liberal Party held at the University of Melbourne Archives v · d · ePolitics of Australia Commonwealth Queen · Governor-General · Parliament · House of Representatives · Senate · High Court · Lower courts · Prime Minister · Cabinet · Executive Council · Ministry Federal elections pre-1969 · 1969 · 1972 · 1974 · 1975 · 1977 · 1980 · 1983 · 1984 · 1987 · 1990 · 1993 · 1996 · 1998 · 2001 · 2004 · 2007 · 2010 · Next · by-elections State/territory elections NSW (2011 election) · VIC (2010 election) · QLD (2011-12 election) · WA (2012–13 election) · SA (2014 election) · TAS (2010 election) · ACT (2012 election) · NT (2012 election) Political parties Labor · Coalition (Liberal, National, LNP, CLP) · Greens · Family First · Other parties v · d · eInternational Democrat Union Asia Pacific Democrat Union · Caribbean Democrat Union · Democrat Union of Africa · European Democrat Union · European People's Party · International Women's Democrat Union · International Young Democrat Union · Union of Latin American Parties  Member parties Democratic Party · Liberal Party · Austrian People's Party · National Independence Party · Union of Democratic Forces · Conservative Party · Independent Democrat Union · National Renewal · Kuomintang · Conservative Party · Democratic Union · Democratic Rally · Civic Democratic Party · Conservative People's Party · National Progressive Force · Social Christian Party · Nationalist Republican Alliance · Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica · National Coalition Party · Union for a Popular Movement · United National Movement · Christian Democratic Union · Christian Social Union of Bavaria · New Patriotic Party · New Democracy · Unionist Party · National Party · Fidesz · Independence Party · Grand National Party · National Party · Conservative Party · Conservative Party · Christian People's Party · Democratic and Social Centre – People's Party · Democratic Party of Serbia · Slovenian Democratic Party · People's Party · United National Party · Moderate Party · Conservative Party · Republican Party