With two weeks left before the September 7 election, most of the pollsters and punters have already concluded that Kevin Rudd and Labor have an uphill battle if they are to snatch victory away from the hands of Tony Abbott and his Coalition. As a matter of fact, they think that only a miracle can save the Labor government. Pollsters and punters, as well as other old timers in the world of politics such as politicians, journalists and vested interests, usually get it right. Yes, Kevin Rudd and Labor, as it was stated many weeks ago in this column, were facing defeat from the onset of the election. What was then and what still remains as the most probable outcome, that is, a Coalition victory, has started to show in the Prime Minister’s body language during the last few days.
Having said this, I personally think that this election campaign needs to become a derby. If Australia is to benefit, if policies and public scrutiny, rather than slogans and unchecked pronouncements are to determine the outcome, a derby is of the utmost necessity.
It is very difficult for Labor to make this election fight a derby though. The leadership change came too late. The election date was called rather early. The fire-power of the opposition, especially in the conservative media world, is unprecedented. Australians having managed to escape the Global Financial Crisis, to a great extent thanks to the immediate response and handling of the crisis by the Rudd government, and having lived in a land of plenty, cannot really understand or appreciate what it means to avoid an economic catastrophe.
Even though the stakes at this election are high, with many big picture issues (the state of the economy, emissions trading, Gonski reforms, NBN rollout, migration etc.), the impact that this election campaign has generated in the wider community is not all that noticeable. Quite a few people are not discussing this election and its issues. These people, unfortunately, are the ones mostly affected by government change and by the role of the government. Welfare recipients, pensioners, blue and white collar working class people, students, do not make enough ‘noise’ in this election campaign.
The electoral roll might have reached a record of 14.7 million Australians, an increase of 624,000 people since the last election, however, there are still approximately 1.2 million citizens with the right to vote who refused to do so.
The democratic and traditional political process might have been undermined in the entire western world in the past few decades, or it might have been ‘replaced’ by other forms of action or ‘representation’, but traditional politics, governments, elections and institutions are still the means by which societies organise their collective and individual affairs.
It might be difficult for tertiary students to participate in a meaningful and effective way in mainstream politics, when according to studies eight out of ten are forced to work in order to finance their studies, or when almost every graduate has a debt of approximately 40,000 dollars. However, idealism, optimism, collective action, are still vital forces in politics and prerequisites for social change that might emancipate and empower people, especially disadvantaged people. Democratic politics and elections may not always be a transformative process, but they can become so in the future, as they have been in many instances of human history, provided people are determined to fight for the transformation of existing society.
The ‘game’ is not a level playing field, given that outcomes are determined by those who participate but if more people engage more actively in the political process, before and after the election, then politics with a purpose might be able to rally the troops. This is a prerequisite if a greater and more representative number of Australians are to enjoy the riches of the land, and if the country is to better equip itself in order to face all the great challenges of the present and the future.