December 10, 1949 marked a defining moment in Australia’s democratic history — the first election for the Australian Senate conducted under the system of Proportional Representation Australia (PRA).
Reflecting on this 50-year milestone, Mr Deane Crabb, Secretary of the Electoral Reform Society of South Australia, said it was an important time to recognise what this system has meant for Australia’s political landscape.
“In celebrating this milestone, it is worthwhile reflecting on what proportional representation has achieved for Australian democracy,” Mr Crabb said.
“The Senate is now considered to be more democratically elected than the House of Representatives.”
A Fairer Reflection of the People’s Vote
Mr Crabb highlighted the difference in how representative each house of Parliament has become under the two systems.
“A comparison of the results from the 1998 Federal Election shows that the votes of 87% of Australian voters helped elect Senators,” he explained.
“In contrast, only 54% of voters succeeded in electing their Members of the House of Representatives.”
While proportional representation in the Senate allows the chamber to mirror the diversity of political opinion across the nation, the House of Representatives, elected under a majoritarian preferential voting system, continues to distort that diversity.
“In the House of Representatives today, there is only one Member of Parliament who is not affiliated with either the Coalition or the Australian Labor Party,” Mr Crabb said.
“This is despite the fact that one in five Australians – around 20% – voted for parties other than the two major ones.”
The Case for Extending PR to the Lower House
According to the Electoral Reform Society, the Senate’s success over the past 50 years demonstrates that proportional representation provides fairer and more effective democracy – ensuring that all significant sections of the community are represented in Parliament.
“Given the success of proportional representation in the Senate, it is now timely to consider how the method of electing the House of Representatives could be improved,” Mr Crabb said.
The Society argues that adopting proportional representation for both houses would create a more balanced and responsive Parliament – one that more accurately reflects the will of the people.
Background
- Proportional Representation (PR) was first used in Australia for the Senate election of 10 December 1949, replacing the previous “winner-takes-all” system that often led to landslide results not reflective of the national vote.
- The Hare–Clark system, used in Tasmania and the ACT, and the Senate’s PR model have both been internationally recognised for their fairness and ability to reduce “wasted votes.”
- Under PR, political diversity and voter choice are preserved, with minority and independent voices able to gain representation in proportion to their actual electoral support.
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