The 2025 Australian Federal Election is being held on Saturday, May 3rd . We are voting for candidates in the House of Representatives (lower house) and the Senate (upper house). You can check your enrolment details, including your electorate, here: https://check.aec.gov.au/
HOW VOTING WORKS:
In the House of Representatives (Lower House): You must NUMBER EVERY BOX In the Senate (Upper House): You must number at least six (6) parties above the line OR 12 candidates below the line. Currently, firearms laws are a State matter, not a Federal one. It is not possible for us to put together a comprehensive list of “shooter-friendly” Federal political parties and candidates, but some names to look out for on the ballot include:
- Katter’s Australian Party
- Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party
- Libertarian Party
- Pauline Hanson’s One Nation
There will almost certainly be others, depending on your electorate – you will need to do your own research into these candidates, which could be as simple as e-mailing them and asking for their stance on firearms-related matters. The Australian Electoral Commission has a list of all candidates here, along with a tool to help you identify the candidates in your electorate: https://www.aec.gov.au/election/candidates.htm
- NUMBER EVERY BOX AND PUT THE MAJOR PARTIES & GREENS LAST
Our general advice is to always put the Major parties (ALP & LNP) and Greens last on your preferences, unless there are candidates from known gun- or hunting- haters such as the Animal Justice Party on the ballot, in which case put them dead last below the Majors. The critical thing is that you do not give your “1” vote to a Major Party or the Greens – we’ll
explain why in a later point. - ONLY YOU DECIDE YOUR PREFERENCE VOTES
Ignore “how to vote” cards – the only person who decides where your preference votes go is YOU. It does not matter who is preferencing whom on How To Vote Cards; they are suggestions which you can and generally should ignore. Political commentator Topher Field has put together this outstanding video on how preferences work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiLAx7kp4Rc We encourage you to watch it, understand it, and share it with everyone you know! - EVERY VOTE FOR A MINOR PARTY OR INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE TAKES MONEY AWAY FROM THE MAJORS
This election, every primary vote a party or candidate receives is worth $3.386, provided that party or candidate receives at least 4% of the overall first preference votes in that electorate. Established party budgets will almost certainly include a line item for expected electoral funding. If every licensed shooter in Australia voted for a minor party or independent candidate, that would take roughly $3.5 million out of the coffers of the ALP and LNP. That’s $3.5m those parties cannot use to employ activists and “policy advisors” to further restrict gun laws, develop policies to lock hunters out of wilderness areas, or otherwise make our lives worse to score political points. The loss of electoral funding will send a loud, clear, and un-ignorable message to the major political parties: Do not attack or harass shooters! - THERE ARE GENERALLY NO “PERFECT” PARTIES FOR SHOOTERS TO VOTE FOR
There are no parties with pro-firearms platforms who will appeal to all shooters – indeed, many of them may have other policies you as an individual shooter may actively disagree with. Think seriously about whether the policies you disagree with are genuinely deal-breakers for you.
One of the objects of voting strategically is to take primary votes away from the Majors – every primary vote they lose is money out of their pockets, and an increased chance of breaking the uni-party monopoly on Parliament. Voting for the Majors or Greens first because you dislike one or two of a pro-gun Minor Party’s policies will not improve anything for shooters, and may even make things worse. - YOU ARE NOT “WASTING YOUR VOTE” BY VOTING FOR A PRO-GUN MINOR PARTY OR INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE
Shooters do not need to have a majority of seats in Parliament to make a real impact. Every single pro-firearm MP in parliament is a voice for shooters and will be able to do vital things like:
- Get media attention on shooter issues
- Demand information on Government activities via “Questions on Notice”
- Provide a voice of reason on Committees
- Provide shooter-friendly input to Committee and Government reports
- Advocate for fairer treatment for responsible firearms users generally
IF WE WANT REAL CHANGE FOR SHOOTERS, WE NEED TO BREAK THE UNIPARTY MONOPOLY. NUMBER EVERY BOX AND PUT THE MAJORS, GREENS AND ANTI-SHOOTERS LAST!
Authorised by J Linsley, 61 Arthur Street, Dalby QLD 4405 for Shooters Union Australia
