It is a consequence of an election in which more crossbench candidates than ever either won or came second in a House of Representatives seat.
Key findings:
- Second place to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Grayndler was a Green; to Opposition Leader Sussan Ley in Farrer was an independent; and to Nationals Leader David Littleproud in Maranoa was One Nation.
- Crossbench candidates set a record for the most first and second-place finishes in the 2025 federal election: 35, up from 27 in 2022 and just 15 in 2019.
"It is the first time in Australian history that every party leader had to defeat an independent or minor party runner-up to win their seat," said Bill Browne, Democracy & Accountability Director at The Australia Institute.
"Over the past four decades, Australians have increasingly voted for minor parties and independents at the expense of the major parties.
"The minor party and independent vote exceeded the Liberal/National vote for the first time at this election.
"Australians are entitled to fair and competitive elections, but earlier this year Labor and Liberal voted together to pass laws that will give tens of millions of dollars to the major parties and treat independents and new entrants unfairly.
"Older tools that assume a binary, like the 'two-party preferred vote' and the electoral pendulum, struggle to explain and predict the results of modern Australian elections.
"Australians increasingly want a diversity of voices in Parliament."
