Professor Sharon Davis highlighted the phenomenon of coalitions between the Liberal Party and the National Party often experiencing internal instability as well as the low attractiveness of those far-right parties to women voters due to a lack of inclusive communication.
Although Australia once had a female Prime Minister such as Julia Gillard, Professor Davis noted that they often rose to office through internal party mechanisms or emergency conditions rather than through direct mandates of national elections, indicating the still strong culture of patriarchy and gender bias in Australian society's perception of the leader figure.
Comparisons were also made with other countries, where Indonesia is considered to have made progress in terms of a quota system of female representation in parliament, as well as New Zealand which is seen as much more progressive in making room for female leaders.
In Australia itself, left-wing parties such as the Labor Party and the Greens have a much higher percentage of female MPs than the rightwing coalition parties.
As a solution to eroding these systemic barriers, ideas emerged regarding the application of quota systems and the need for political education in order to change people's mindset to focus more on one's achievements and abilities regardless of gender.
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