Democracy ‘under assault’ from significant third parties at 2025 federal election, parliamentary inquiry finds
Guardian AU
•Tue, 30 Jun 2026 17:12:18 GMT
📰 What Happened
A parliamentary inquiry has found that Australia's democracy came 'under assault' at the 2025 federal election from significant third-party interference, including members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church and the rightwing lobby group Advance. The interim report from the Labor-led joint standing committee on electoral matters, tabled on 30 June 2026, recommended new laws to police behaviour at polling booths, including a proposed code of conduct for campaigners. The inquiry received dozens of submissions detailing what was described as 'unprecedented weirdest stuff' at polling places. The Coalition dismissed the findings, with Liberal senator Jess Collins accusing Labor of turning the election review into a 'hyper-partisan witch-hunt' against members of the church.
🔍 The Backstory
The 2025 Australian federal election was closely contested and marked by unprecedented campaigning tactics from third-party groups. The joint standing committee on electoral matters is a standard parliamentary body that reviews each federal election to identify areas for improvement. The involvement of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church — a conservative religious group — and Advance — a rightwing advocacy organisation — in election-day activities prompted concerns about the 'Americanisation' of Australian political campaigning.
🎯 Why It Matters
The findings raise serious questions about the integrity of Australia's electoral processes and the vulnerability of its democracy to organised third-party interference. The partisan divide over the report's recommendations suggests that bipartisan consensus on electoral reform may be difficult to achieve.
A parliamentary inquiry has found that Australia's democracy came 'under assault' at the 2025 federal election from significant third-party interference, including members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church and the rightwing lobby group Advance. The interim report from the Labor-led joint standing committee on electoral matters, tabled on 30 June 2026, recommended new laws to police behaviour at polling booths, including a proposed code of conduct for campaigners. The inquiry received dozens of submissions detailing what was described as 'unprecedented weirdest stuff' at polling places. The Coalition dismissed the findings, with Liberal senator Jess Collins accusing Labor of turning the election review into a 'hyper-partisan witch-hunt' against members of the church.
The 2025 Australian federal election was closely contested and marked by unprecedented campaigning tactics from third-party groups. The joint standing committee on electoral matters is a standard parliamentary body that reviews each federal election to identify areas for improvement. The involvement of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church — a conservative religious group — and Advance — a rightwing advocacy organisation — in election-day activities prompted concerns about the 'Americanisation' of Australian political campaigning.
The findings raise serious questions about the integrity of Australia's electoral processes and the vulnerability of its democracy to organised third-party interference. The partisan divide over the report's recommendations suggests that bipartisan consensus on electoral reform may be difficult to achieve.