At the last election almost one in three Australians voted for a minor party or an independent candidate — the highest number in almost 100 years.
It saw 16 independent and minor MPs joining the crossbench in the House of Representatives, with the power to take part in debates and introduce bills.
The number of minor party candidates elected to the Senate also increased.
But as micro and mini parties increasingly grow in popularity, who are some of the key players and what exactly do they stand for?
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- Animal Justice Party
- Australian Christians
- Australian Citizens Party
- Australian Democrats
- Australia's Voice
- Family First Party Australia
- Fusion
- Gerard Rennick People First
- Health Environment Accountability Rights Transparency
- Indigenous – Aboriginal Party of Australia
- Jacqui Lambie Network
- Katter's Australian party
- Legalise Cannabis Party
- Libertarian Party
- Pauline Hanson's One Nation
- Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party
- Socialist Alliance
- Sustainable Australia Party
- Trumpet of Patriots
- Victorian Socialists
For information on The Greens you can read our story below.
Animal Justice Party
"If we do not act now, wildlife will continue to suffer and die out. So, I will keep pushing the government to act," said Purcell. Source: AAP / Joel Carrett
Key policies include:
- Ban greyhound and horse racing;
- Extra protections for animals including brumbies, bats and flying foxes, dingoes, ducks, kangaroos, koalas and platypus;
- Declaring a climate emergency and clean energy policies;
- Social justice issues including access to abortion, affordable housing, raising the age of criminal responsibility and supporting asylum seekers.
Where they're running: In all states except the Northern Territory in the Senate. In the lower house in ACT, NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria.
Australian Christians
Australian Christians brand themselves as the "only party that will defend life, faith, family and freedom".
They're pro-life and opposed to abortion, assisted suicide and "coercive vaccine mandates". They also believe in a drug-free Australia and binary genders.
Key policies include:
- Reversing same-sex marriage;
- Protecting and defending religious freedom;
- Banning puberty blockers in minors; and
- "Wisely stewarding the environment God has given us."
Where they're running: In the Senate in NSW and Western Australia. In 10 lower house seats in WA.
Australian Citizens Party
The Australian Citizens Party stands for "restoring Australia's national and economic sovereignty". They were established in 1988, originally under the name Citizens Electoral Council (CEC).
Key policies include:
- Ending Australia's foreign policy ties to the US and UK, including an end to the "war with China";
- Restablishing a government bank — the Aussie Post Bank.
- Abolishing and replacing the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) and redefining the National Anti-Corruption Commission; and
- Expanding healthcare resources and nuclear power.
Where they're running: In both the Senate and the lower house in NSW, NT, QLD, Tasmania and WA. In just the lower house in SA.
Australian Democrats
Known for their "keep the bastards honest" slogan, the Australian Democrats were once a significant force in the Senate, but their popularity has since faded. They sit left-of-centre and are known for their environmental policies and "promise to act honestly and ethically".
Key policies include:
- "Evidence-based governance", leaning on scientific methods;
- Opposing nuclear energy; and
- Raising the tax-free threshold from $18,200 to $45,000 a year.
Where they're running: The Senate in QLD, VIC and WA. One lower house seat in NSW.
Australia's Voice
In July 2024, Fatima Payman announced her resignation from the Labor party. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch
They're also campaigning for supermarket divestiture powers, limiting negative gearing, and addressing the housing crisis.
Key policies include:
- "Real" climate action;
- Tackling "out-of-control" HECS debt by raising the repayment threshold to the median wage and capping debt at 1.5 times the original debt; and
- Raising the rate of Jobseeker.
Where they're running: Senate candidates in NSW, QLD, SA, VIC and WA.
Family First Party Australia
Based on Judeo-Christian ethics, the party seeks to "restore Australia by restoring the primacy of the family in public policy".
They're against same-sex marriage and abortion, want to remove LGBTIQ+ content from schools, and ban gender affirming surgery for minors. They also believe that multiculturalism has "failed" and want to pause Muslim immigration.
Key policies include:
- Closing drug injecting centres;
- Removing the "couple penalty" that they say financially discriminates against families where one parent is an at-home carer; and
- Pro-life polices, including banning late term abortions and encouraging the public to "fall in love again with unborn babies".
Where they're running: In both the Senate and lower house in NSW, QLD, SA and VIC.
Fusion
Also known by their full name — Fusion | Planet Rescue | Whistleblower Protection | Innovation — this party is comprised of multiple minor parties, including the Science party, Pirate party, Secular party, Vote Planet and Climate Change Justice party.
Its biggest priority is tackling climate change and creating a "free, fair and innovative society for current and future generations" through socially progressive policies.
Key policies include:
- Ending native logging and broad scale land clearing, as well as ending fossil fuel extraction;
- The separation of church and state; and
- "Ethical governance", including protection for whistleblowers and transparent governments.
Where they're running: Both Senate and lower house seats in NSW, QLD, SA, VIC and WA.
Gerard Rennick People First
Gerard Rennick announced his resignation from the Liberal National Party last year via social media. Source: AAP
Key policies include:
- Raising the tax-free threshold from $18,200 to $40,000;
- Childcare subsidy payments to go direct to parents;
- Superannuation to be voluntary; and
- Reinstating a public bank which the "Australian government should fund itself".
Where they're running: In both the Senate and lower house in NSW, QLD and VIC. Just the Senate in WA and only the lower house in SA.
Health Environment Accountability Rights Transparency (HEART)
HEART was first registered as the Involuntary Medication Objectors party in 2016.
It champions "the right to choose or refuse any health product or procedure" and for increased transparency in environmental and economic governance.
Key policies include:
- Calling for a Bill of Rights that protect the right to reject lockdowns, vaccination mandates, prevent medical coercion during abortions and euthanasia;
- Promoting natural treatment alternatives in the public health system; and
- Challenging Australia's membership in the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations.
Where they're running: The Senate in ACT, NSW, QLD and VIC. The lower house in ACT and NSW.
Indigenous – Aboriginal Party of Australia
This party is made up of exclusively Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
It originated with Barkindji and Malyangapa man, Owen Whyman in 2020 who said he started "the first political party in Australia that really cares about Indigenous people".
Key policies include:
- Ending juvenile detention and Indigenous incarceration "except for the most serious offences".
- Reinstating traditional land management, including protection of rivers and sacred sites;
- Supporting Indigenous control of Indigenous school education and businesses; and
- Electing more Indigenous people to parliament.
Where they're running: The senate in NSW, QLD and VIC. Lower house seats in NT, NSW and WA.
Jacqui Lambie Network
The Jacqui Lambie Network was formed in 2015 and believes that "politics should be open to everyone, not just the entitled political class".
Historically it has supported working class "battlers" and welfare recipients.
Key policies include:
- Defending veterans and implementing recommendations from the Royal Commission into defence and veteran suicide;
- Tightening laws on how political donations are disclosed to the public;
- Supporting Australian manufacturing to "Make Australia Make Again"; and
- Establishing an inquiry into Chinese foreign interference.
Where they're running: Senate seats in NSW, QLD, SA and TAS.
Katter's Australian party
Led by Queensland senator Bob Katter the party says they are the only ones "with the guts to fight for what really matters". That includes introducing tougher youth crime laws in Queensland so homeowners have the right to use lethal force in self-defence.
Key policies include:
- Reduce youth crime and introduce a "Cattle Law" to allow homeowners to use lethal force in self-defence without legal repercussion;
- Loosen firearm laws, reduce crocodile numbers and cull flying foxes;
- Reduce cost of living and housing prices in Queensland.
Where they're running: Both the Senate and lower house in QLD.
Legalise Cannabis Party
Fiona Patten is a Legalise Cannabis Party Senate candidate for Victoria and, according to her campaign material, she was the first political party leader to admit using cannabis regularly to "relax". Source: AAP / Joel Carrett
Key policies include:
- Remove all arrests and historical criminal records of cannabis users;
- Allow all consumers and/or carers to grow cannabis in their gardens and indoors;
- Establish state-regulated testing facilities for producers, growers and consumers; and
- Establish an independent cannabis authority overseeing the personal use of cannabis.
Where they're running: All states and territories.
Libertarian Party
Formerly known as the Liberal Democrats, the party stands for individual liberty, free markets and small governments.
Key policies include:
- Raise the income tax-free threshold to $50,000 for individuals and $100,000 for couples;
- Biological gender policies including changing the definition of a woman in the Sex Discrimination Act;
- Introduce an immigration fee system, limit short-term visas and restrict access to citizenship; and
- Enshrine free speech into the Australian Constitution, abolish the Federal Department of Education as well as the e-Safety Commissioner.
Where they're running: The Senate in NSW, QLD, SA, TAS and VIC.
Pauline Hanson's One Nation
The One Nation party was established by Pauline Hanson and has a divisive political history due to her views on immigration.
Hanson was jailed for electoral fraud in 2003. Her convictions were later overturned, and she was elected as a senator for Queensland in 2016. The One Nation website calls Hanson "a strong voice for the Australian people in the halls of power".
Key policies include:
- Joint income taxing, allowing families with at least one dependent child to split income tax
- Deport 75,00 "illegal migrants", cap immigration visas at 130,00 per year and withdraw from the UN Refugee Convention;
- Abolish the Department of Climate Change as well as the National Indigenous Australians Agency; and
- Enshrine the right to free speech in the Constitution.
Where they're running: All states and territories.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party
The conservative party advocates for regional communities who "bear the brunt of self inner-city focused politics". They are calling for more self-reliance in defence and expanded rights for hunters and fishers.
Key policies include:
- Reduced firearm regulations and abolish foreign land and water ownership;
- Increased funding for regional education, healthcare and infrastructure;
- Energy policy centred on nuclear power and "clean coal";
- Increased free speech and data privacy laws; and
- Implementation of a national Bill of Rights.
Where they're running: Lower house only in NSW.
Socialist Alliance
The Socialist Alliance party believes institutions including parliament, government, police and the military need to come "under the democratic control of ordinary people".
Since 2001, they have campaigned for workers rights and more recently — affordable housing, an end to homelessness and the large-scale expansion of public housing.
Key policies include:
- Immediate sanctions on Israel, including an end to all arms exports to Israel;
- Australia's withdrawal from AUKUS, ANZUS and the Quad (a diplomatic partnership between Australia, India, Japan and the US);
- Zero carbon emissions and 100 per cent renewable energy by 2030; and
- Permanent protection for all refugees and their partners/children.
Where they're running: Both the Senate and lower house in NSW and VIC. Senate only in QLD and WA.
Sustainable Australia Party
The party was established in 2010 with a mission to "de-corrupt politics for a fair and sustainable Australia". It aims to put the environment first and believes the economy is intertwined with society and the environment.
Key policies include:
- Put the environment first and enshrine into law the "human right of a healthy natural environment";
- Stop over-development and end the housing crisis;
- Slow population growth; and
- Create a diverse and equitable economy, including secure jobs.
Where they're running: All states and territories.
Trumpet of Patriots
Clive Palmer's Trumpet of Patriots party has been targeting voters with text messages. Source: AAP / Hilary Wardhaugh
In that short time, Trumpet of Patriots has grown, with almost 100 candidates vying for lower house seats.
Key policies include:
- Establish a Trump-like Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE);
- Cut immigration to "prioritise the needs of Australian citizens" and "migration from nations with compatible values";
- Get the "woke agenda" out of schools and remove all Welcome to Country addresses; and
- Exit the Paris Climate Agreement, end net zero targets and repeal the ban on nuclear energy.
Where they're running: In all states in the Senate, plus almost 100 lower house seats.
Victorian Socialists
Similar to the Socialist Alliance party, the Victorian Socialists say they advocate "for the people, not the powerful".
Their Victorian Senate candidate — Jordan van den Lamb (known as "purplepingers" online) has made headlines for his online database, which lists thousands of rental property reviews.
Key policies include:
- Climate change and energy, including "public ownership and democratic control" over the energy industry;
- Price caps on grocery items and a five-year freeze on rent increases; and
- Increase hospital funding, expand Medicare and free health care.
Where they're running: Both the Senate and lower house in VIC.
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