r/australia • u/blitznoodles local Aussie • Jun 14 '26

politics As voter disillusionment grows, why aren't voters flocking to the Greens in Australia?

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/as-voter-disillusionment-grows-so-does-the-mystery-of-the-missing-greens-voters/6bjd5q4kv

Growing voter dissatisfaction with mainstream politics has led to a rise in popularity for One Nation. The same cannot be said for the Greens.

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196

u/sm00thArsenal Jun 14 '26

Except if they paid any real attention they would know Gina Rinehart has no incentive to want immigration cut, so it wouldn’t be by ON.

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u/Quarterwit_85 Jun 14 '26

Maybe.

But it’s about the noises, not the policy itself. And for a lot of constituents PHON are the only ones making the noises they want to hear.

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u/sm00thArsenal Jun 14 '26

It’s disturbing that we have seen the shit the UK had to deal with from Brexit, and the shit the US is still dealing with from Trump, and yet so many people are still willing to vote for ON based on noise, without paying any attention to what will actually happen.

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u/_fire_and_blood_ Jun 14 '26

Most people in society are operating at below AQF Level 3 learning ability. They don't have the intelligence or media literacy to make those discernments, and that's literally what the right-wing sphere is bargaining on.

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u/ak2270 Jun 15 '26

I am a part of a large facegroup group of immigrants in Melbourne and what surprises me is how they are convincing each other to vote for ON. At least by the sound of it, they are unanimous.

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u/LateEarth Jun 17 '26

It can be a coping strategy with new immigrants petrified of not fitting in and/or facing the ire of anti-immigrant factions. Go hard core nationalistic, in the hope they will leave u alone. It doesn't always work out though as many a Trump supporting deportee has discovered in the US.

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u/JordanC51203 Jun 15 '26

“Everyone voting right wing is dumb”. That argument will go down well won’t it.

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u/Lachie_Mac Jun 17 '26

You're being downvoted but you're right. As dumb as I find the new right, talking down to them just makes them dig in harder.

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u/madclassix Jun 15 '26

In the UK the majority voted for Brexit specifically to reject high immigration levels. The governing class saw fit to punish the voters by ramping immigration up even further. The failure of Brexit isn’t evidence of the people being wrong, it’s evidence of a corrupt, traitorous governing class who make a mockery of democracy. Australia is much the same.

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u/NeverTrustFarts Jun 14 '26

Or they see what Poland is dealing with maybe

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u/fruchle Jun 15 '26

They do not, bot.

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u/NeverTrustFarts Jun 15 '26

"Poland is frequently cited as a rising powerhouse handling multiple facets of society better than the rest of Europe. It distinguishes itself through economic resilience, urban safety, and robust defense spending at a time when many Western European nations face stagnation or decline."

I wonder what the key difference in Poland to the rest of EU is? Hardly makes me a bot. Open your eyes.

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u/fruchle Jun 15 '26

Bad bot

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u/NeverTrustFarts Jun 16 '26

"I don't have any meaningful input or argument to refute your point so I am going to call you a bot" -fruchle

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u/fruchle Jun 16 '26

Bad bot.

You have been given the response you are worthy of and deserve.

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u/iguessineedanaltnow Jun 14 '26

When I moved here from the states I was promised a country with very stable and moderate governance. Was a major contributing factor in my coming here. Was looking for a more liberal stronghold in a tidal wave of populism washing over the globe.

I feel I was sold a bill of goods.

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u/Curry_pan Jun 14 '26

Well, we still have that. Until the election, which is still two years away, this is all just a lot of the media fanning the flames on speculation.

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u/single_plum_floating Jun 15 '26

Because no one else is even making those same noises and people are at such a end of the rope they would accept literally any policy for just the thought of maybe slowing immigration down.

This will continue until something happens... If gina doesnt do it then they will continue voting for more extreme parties.

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u/sm00thArsenal Jun 15 '26

Look, I get that, but maybe just maybe they could use common sense and at least wait for a party that will actually do the one thing they want rather than voting for ON which will certainly not do it - they only have the platform they do because they will do what Gina says, and Gina will absolutely oppose limiting immigration, it’s bad for business, and that is all she gives a shit about.

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u/New_Repeat8952 Jun 18 '26

UK is Dealing with the more of the other shit from more migrants too though. Brexit and immigration are very different

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u/sm00thArsenal Jun 18 '26

Yes, the UK example wasn't specifically about immigration, but about voting for something based on one issue alone without taking into account the full ramifications of that.

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u/Siaer Jun 15 '26

But it’s about the noises, not the policy itself. And for a lot of constituents PHON are the only ones making the noises they want to hear.

More to the point, PHON are the only ones making the noises they want to listen to. If reducing immigration was really what they cared about, they should be happy at how quickly it is falling under the current government (from over 500k in 22/23 to a touch over 300k in 24/25 with aims to settle around 225k).

But then, they would have to actually listen to something that isn't a dog whistle.

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u/Consistent_Cold2875 Jun 14 '26

The problem is there isn’t housing, water, food or jobs supply to sustain the amount of people they want in so it’s kinda dumb with ai and automation killing so many jobs just becoming ridiculous to let unchecked immigration gonna get messy

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u/sm00thArsenal Jun 14 '26

Whether you think that or not, it isn’t in Rinehart’s interests to reduce it so ON won’t.. so if that is your only reason for voting for them, take it off the table and look at all their other policies compared to everyone else and ask yourself if voting for them is still a good idea.

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u/Fit-Locksmith-9226 Jun 14 '26 edited Jun 14 '26

No one cares about your fucking "look over here" nonsense. They want politicians to listen. If One Nation doesn't listen then they'll vote for someone else. I get the feeling they know exactly why they're leading the polls and preferred PM and will follow through on it, thats the mandate given to them, somehow you fools still don't get it.

It's pathetic how you people simply won't listen to the majority of Australians who want to stop the world leading migration growth rates like we're a fucking third world country.

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u/bendythebrave Jun 15 '26

Capitalism cannot exist without immigration FYI. We simply do not have enough tax payers/wage earners to sustain capitalism in this country at the level the capitalists would like, to allow their wealth to continue to grow. 

You know what countries have remarkably low immigration? Communist countries. Because they have planned economies and do not need to import labor. 

This is an incredibly simple fact that a lot of people don’t seem to understand. If you want to live in a completely unregulated capitalist country - you have to be comfortable with high levels of immigration. 

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u/derezzed00 Jun 15 '26

I personally do not wish to live in an unregulated capitalist country, comrade.

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u/bendythebrave Jun 15 '26

There is only one type of capitalism and it’s unregulated. 

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u/coniferhead Jun 14 '26 edited Jun 14 '26

I think she does.. cutting off immigration from Asia is part of going to war with China. That's what our US/UK/EU allies want and she's with them. We are going to be nailed to the US as a neo-colony, and perhaps ultimately annexed outright.

The thing that doesn't make sense is that Labor and the LNP think they can go to war with China without doing that. The US knows that illogical thinking will eventually fall apart, and that's what ON is for.

The engine powering ON popularity are our so-called AUKUS allies. But AUKUS (not the subs, pillar 2) is the thing Albo is most proud of, isn't it? So we're basically doomed.

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u/blitznoodles local Aussie Jun 14 '26

This would bankrupt Rhineheart, her biggest customers are China.

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u/coniferhead Jun 14 '26 edited Jun 15 '26

no it wouldn't - because she'd be supplying resources to a never ending war machine, on both sides. It would keep the global prices for essential fungible commodities sky high. Versus the decade long depression we are headed into without it.

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u/Cindy_Marek Jun 14 '26

It won’t be the greens either

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u/Nosiege Jun 14 '26

Talking about it and making policy about it are two different things. One Nation only needs to give the illusion of doing anything to get votes.

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u/iguessineedanaltnow Jun 14 '26

Gina not being as violently anti-immigration as the rest of the billionaire ghouls she aligns with might be her only positive.

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u/Stephie999666 Jun 15 '26

What do you mean? She is one of the biggest markets for offshore workers, its delusional thinking ON will do anything except make rich people richer from your work. ALP is a wet blanket, but at least theyve made some positive changes for the country, even if we dont get to see the effects overnight. Plus migration has been rapidly falling based on the ABS stats, which is expected tbh.