Ben Raue

An under-rated part of the JSJ story is how he ended up in parliament. He didn't win a contested party preselection for a winnable seat - he was the #3 on the WA Greens Senate ticket in 2016 behind Ludlam and Siewert. No Green has ever come close to being elected from #3 (or #2 in a half-Senate)

So of all the long-term Greens senators in Australia, only Steele-John short-circuited the normal rise in the party and preselection, instead going from a totally unwinnable spot to a safe seat in the Senate.

An under-rated part of the JSJ story is how he ended up in parliament. He didn't win a contested party preselection for a winnable seat - he was the #3 on the WA Greens Senate ticket in 2016 behind Ludlam and Siewert. No Green has ever come close to being elected from #3 (or #2 in a half-Senate)

The only comparable example is Andrew Bartlett who replaced Larissa Waters for the same reason. But Bartlett was a former senator, former Democrats leader and had contested the #2 seat which was winnable in many states (perhaps not Queensland). He also had run for Brisbane, one of their best seats.

An under-rated part of the JSJ story is how he ended up in parliament. He didn't win a contested party preselection for a winnable seat - he was the #3 on the WA Greens Senate ticket in 2016 behind Ludlam and Siewert. No Green has ever come close to being elected from #3 (or #2 in a half-Senate)

If Ludlam had resigned from the Senate in the normal manner, the party would have had a choice about who they ran, and my understanding was there was a number of contenders in the wings, JSJ was not one of them.

Part 2 of my three-party electoral history podcast series 'Just Vote 1' is out now. This part covers the period from the 1950s to the 1990s, looking at DLP preferences, Whitlam moving for OPV, and preferences beginning to help Labor in the 90s.

You can watch the podcast on YouTube, featuring a few graphs. The above post also contains the graphs, so you can also read this as an article if you prefer. www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQtd...

Today I’m starting something new with the Tally Room podcast: a three-part history podcast looking at the history of OPV in Australia, rolling out over the next 3 weeks. This first episode looks at early debates on preferential voting and how it worked up to 1951. www.tallyroom.com.au/68638

In the next two weeks I will look at the Whitman government’s push for OPV in 1974, and Labor’s cooling enthusiasm for the reform as the flow of preferences reversed. I’ll also look at the “Just Vote 1” campaigning which started around 1999-2001.

Today I’m starting something new with the Tally Room podcast: a three-part history podcast looking at the history of OPV in Australia, rolling out over the next 3 weeks. This first episode looks at early debates on preferential voting and how it worked up to 1951. www.tallyroom.com.au/68638

Today, however, it’s harder to tell who benefits from weaker preference flows and who would be harmed. That will be the last bit of the story, in two weeks time.

Today I’m starting something new with the Tally Room podcast: a three-part history podcast looking at the history of OPV in Australia, rolling out over the next 3 weeks. This first episode looks at early debates on preferential voting and how it worked up to 1951. www.tallyroom.com.au/68638

In the next two weeks I will look at the Whitman government’s push for OPV in 1974, and Labor’s cooling enthusiasm for the reform as the flow of preferences reversed. I’ll also look at the “Just Vote 1” campaigning which started around 1999-2001.

Tickets are now on sale for the Tally Room live show in Melbourne on December 1 with @emilyrosefoley.bsky.social and @rachelwithers.bsky.social www.tallyroom.com.au/68665

I'm excited to announce I'll be hosting my first Tally Room live podcast recording in Melbourne on December 1 - three days after the Victorian state election - with guests @rachelwithers.bsky.social and Emily Foley. Tickets will be available for Patreon members next Monday www.tallyroom.com.au/68631

I'll be following the results of the Secret Harbour by-election tonight, here: www.tallyroom.com.au/66265

Updated the live blog - first batch of postal votes has One Nation way out in front, with Labor losing almost half of their support.

I'll be following the results of the Secret Harbour by-election tonight, here: www.tallyroom.com.au/66265

I'll just be posting here as the website is unable to handle the traffic and isn't working. Anyone who offers a technical fix will be blocked, thanks!

I'm excited to announce that my Queensland state election guide is now live. That election is a while away, in October 2028, but with the redistribution finalised I have now been able to put up the guide. www.tallyroom.com.au/66247

That guide is mostly paywalled, apart from three seats that are freebies. If you want to read the whole thing, sign up for $10+ per month to be a Tally Room member via Patreon. You'll get access to election guides, the discord and ad-free podcasts.