Branch Stacking !

There is a high degree of both power and prestige in winning a seat in parliament - and the salary is a further inducement.  The chances of winning are increased if you have the good fortune to be representing one of the major political parties.  Many voters ignore the individual and vote on party lines.

Getting selected as the candidate for a political party is hard for individuals who lack fame.  The party bosses are usually heavily influenced in favour of those with a sporting or business personae and often such a well known person is ' parachuted " in to a seat against the wishes of the local branch of the party.

Candidate selection otherwise depends on a popular vote within that electorates political branch and in the past this was a favourite tactic of the " factions " within the Labor party.  Today, it is fast finding use across all aspects of politics and even being used to displace a sitting member.  It is a simple but effective tactic.

The person seeking selection - or the faction wanting precedence - urges friends and colleagues to apply for membership of the political party.  They profess to be party supporters and want membership so that their vote will be counted in branch affairs.   Usually they attend meetings prior to a vote on candidate selection, and then quickly lose interest.

This is known as " branch stacking "   Often voting rights have an attendance time factor to disenfranchise new members shortly before an election but that is usually short and easily overcome. It is not unusual for the person with interest in a voting result to pay the membership fees of the new branch members.

That is now becoming prevalent in the Liberal party.  Ann Sudmalis won selection and a south coast seat in 2012 and has just announced that she will not contest the next election.  She contends that branch stacking has replaced her support team and made her position untenable. A senior Liberal supporting an alternative candidate had leaked damaging material to the media and undertaken an unfair and unethical campaign to unseat her.

The Liberal party has become a predominately male bastion with fewer seats held by women and a severe lack of women in ministerial roles.  It claims to be seeking equality but the numbers will not encourage the women's vote at the next election.  The recent spill that saw the position of prime minister replaced apparently  involved bullying and stand over tactics in amassing votes for the challengers and this has resulted in some women members retiring from politics.

The Liberals need to lift their game if they hope to retain the treasury benches.  This factional warfare within the party is damaging at a time when world events require hard decisions to be implemented to protect Australian trade from tariff disruption.  Ideally, the gender balance in parliament should equate to the gender balance in the community.