The 2004 Australian Election Study Survey: The Decline of Political Parties? Long renowned for the stability of its political party system, Australia is finally experiencing a sustained challenge to the dominance of the major parties, which is reflected in an increasing preference by voters for minor parties and independent candidates. This project will examine the implications of these developments by conducting a public-use, national sample survey of voters at the next federal election, likely ....The 2004 Australian Election Study Survey: The Decline of Political Parties? Long renowned for the stability of its political party system, Australia is finally experiencing a sustained challenge to the dominance of the major parties, which is reflected in an increasing preference by voters for minor parties and independent candidates. This project will examine the implications of these developments by conducting a public-use, national sample survey of voters at the next federal election, likely to be held in 2004. The outcomes generated by the project will enhance academic and community understanding of the nature of the changing partisan climate within the Australian electorate.Read moreRead less
Political party financing and democratic consolidation in Indonesia. As Australia's vast neighbour to the north, Indonesia, is of critical importance to Australian national interests. Particularly essential in this regard is the stability of Indonesia's young democracy, which is increasingly threatened by the widespread perception that party politics are contaminated by corrupt, greedy and self-centred politicians. This sentiment is largely fuelled by complaints about questionable fundraising pr ....Political party financing and democratic consolidation in Indonesia. As Australia's vast neighbour to the north, Indonesia, is of critical importance to Australian national interests. Particularly essential in this regard is the stability of Indonesia's young democracy, which is increasingly threatened by the widespread perception that party politics are contaminated by corrupt, greedy and self-centred politicians. This sentiment is largely fuelled by complaints about questionable fundraising practices of political parties. Accordingly, this study will be of great interest to Australian policy-makers, aid officials and businesses that wish to address the deficiencies in Indonesia's political system through political and economic cooperation programs.Read moreRead less
Crafting Authoritarian Politics. Although Russia is nominally a democracy, strong elements of authoritarianism remain dominant. This project examines how Russia has accommodated these authoritarian themes within a representative democracy and, more generally, seeks to shed new light on the process of democratization in postcommunist societies. Russia is the 8th largest country in the world by population and the 11th largest economy based on GDP; it also remains nuclear-armed. Understanding th ....Crafting Authoritarian Politics. Although Russia is nominally a democracy, strong elements of authoritarianism remain dominant. This project examines how Russia has accommodated these authoritarian themes within a representative democracy and, more generally, seeks to shed new light on the process of democratization in postcommunist societies. Russia is the 8th largest country in the world by population and the 11th largest economy based on GDP; it also remains nuclear-armed. Understanding the dynamics of democratization in Russia has implications for political stability across a large section of the world which is currently in transition from authoritarianism to democracy.Read moreRead less
Melpa Kang Rom: A chanted narrative genre from Highland New Guinea and its role in contemporary electoral politics. Across a large region of Highland PNG there are flourishing traditions of chanted tales. These are the subject of a current ARC Discovery project based at ANU, which focuses on both the poetic features of these genres and on their political uses. We seek to augment this project through the participation of Dr. Joseph Ketan, an anthropologist with unique qualifications in that he co ....Melpa Kang Rom: A chanted narrative genre from Highland New Guinea and its role in contemporary electoral politics. Across a large region of Highland PNG there are flourishing traditions of chanted tales. These are the subject of a current ARC Discovery project based at ANU, which focuses on both the poetic features of these genres and on their political uses. We seek to augment this project through the participation of Dr. Joseph Ketan, an anthropologist with unique qualifications in that he comes from the project area, with an insider's knowledge of a local genre of chanted tales and its contexts of use in electoral campaigns, and with extensive previous research in relevant areas of political anthropology. The project will contribute to the cross-cultural study of verbal art, and to and the understanding of contemporary electoral politics in PNG.Read moreRead less
Active citizenship of young people through electoral enrolment. Some 300,000 eighteen to twenty-four year old Australians are not enrolled to vote in federal elections, despite compulsory voting. Consequently they do not exercise their rights, and their responsibilities, as citizens in this way. The Australian Ele ctoral C ommission and the researchers will determine why these young Australians are not enrolled and do not vote. We will identify the characteristics of non-participants particularl ....Active citizenship of young people through electoral enrolment. Some 300,000 eighteen to twenty-four year old Australians are not enrolled to vote in federal elections, despite compulsory voting. Consequently they do not exercise their rights, and their responsibilities, as citizens in this way. The Australian Ele ctoral C ommission and the researchers will determine why these young Australians are not enrolled and do not vote. We will identify the characteristics of non-participants particularly those from rural and regional areas. Outcomes include identification of non-enrolled youth and appropriate interventions to engage young Australians to become active, democratic citizens....Read moreRead less
Creating and Analysing a Citizens' Parliament: Exploring the Public's Deliberative Capacity. This project will contribute to public understanding of Australia's institutions of government, and to debates about possibilities for their reform. It will also demonstrate the contributions to governance that large-scale forums composed of typical citizens could make. In so doing, the project will illuminate the possibilities for more effective citizen participation and public consultation in Australia ....Creating and Analysing a Citizens' Parliament: Exploring the Public's Deliberative Capacity. This project will contribute to public understanding of Australia's institutions of government, and to debates about possibilities for their reform. It will also demonstrate the contributions to governance that large-scale forums composed of typical citizens could make. In so doing, the project will illuminate the possibilities for more effective citizen participation and public consultation in Australia's democracy. The project will develop applied expertise on these issues, and solidify Australia's standing as a leader when it comes to innovative democratic reform.Read moreRead less
The 2010 Australian election study: The dynamics of political choice. In addition to providing an in-depth understanding of general patterns of Australian voting behaviour, the 2010 Australian Election Study (AES) will provide a detailed, objective account of how and why voters made up their minds in the 2010 federal election. The 2010 AES adds to the unbroken series of national election surveys conducted after each Australian federal election since 1987. These surveys provide an unrivalled re ....The 2010 Australian election study: The dynamics of political choice. In addition to providing an in-depth understanding of general patterns of Australian voting behaviour, the 2010 Australian Election Study (AES) will provide a detailed, objective account of how and why voters made up their minds in the 2010 federal election. The 2010 AES adds to the unbroken series of national election surveys conducted after each Australian federal election since 1987. These surveys provide an unrivalled resource for moving beyond impressionistic accounts of political behaviour. The survey will enable researchers to determine what citizens think of politics and the processes that produce a government, and to understand how and why mass political attitudes have changed over a quarter of a century.Read moreRead less
Enrolling the People: The Development of Modern Electoral Administration. In Australia, electoral administration became centralised, professionalised and relatively free of partisan interference during the colonial period. That considerable achievement has been little studied.
The aims of this project are to produce a history of the development of colonial electoral administration; and to isolate the factors that enabled the development of modern electoral administration.
To answer these q ....Enrolling the People: The Development of Modern Electoral Administration. In Australia, electoral administration became centralised, professionalised and relatively free of partisan interference during the colonial period. That considerable achievement has been little studied.
The aims of this project are to produce a history of the development of colonial electoral administration; and to isolate the factors that enabled the development of modern electoral administration.
To answer these questions will illuminate a neglected aspect of Australia's record of institutional innovation. It will also feed directly into the concerns of multilateral bodies over how good electoral practice can be institutionalised.
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