By Leo Gaggl January 7, 2026
Have you ever felt like the political system is rigged against ordinary people? That no matter how you vote, the major parties always seem to be looking after themselves first?
A recent backroom deal between Labor and the Coalition has turned that feeling into a cold, hard fact. They have rammed through new electoral laws that are a direct attack on the independent movement and a slap in the face to every Australian who voted for change.
These laws aren’t about creating a fairer system. They are designed to kill the independents movement and silence communities like ours.
A Rigged Playing Field
On the surface, the new laws pretend to be about fairness, capping campaign spending in each electorate at $800,000. But that’s where the fairness ends.
Under this stitch-up, an independent candidate is stuck with that limit. In contrast, a major party candidate can be backed by a national campaign spending pool of up to $90 million. If community independent Zoe Daniel recontests her seat of Goldstein, she’ll be capped at $800,000 while her Liberal opponent could be supported by a multi-million dollar war chest.
The deal is riddled with loopholes designed to benefit the two major parties:
- Secret War Chests: They’ve created “nominated entities” – special funds that can pour unlimited money into party coffers. The Liberal Party’s version is already sitting on over $90 million.
- Donations on Steroids: A single donor can give a major party up to $450,000 per year by donating to each state and federal branch. Independents are capped at just $50,000 from a crowdfunding source like Climate 200.
- A Taxpayer-Funded Duopoly: The laws hand the major parties an extra $62 million in public funding each electoral cycle.
This isn’t about getting “big money” out of politics. It’s about letting the major parties keep their big money while shutting everyone else out.
“That’s the F**king Point!”
The architect of these laws is South Australian Labor Senator Don Farrell. When a journalist from The Saturday Paper pointed out that these laws would entrench the two-party system, he reportedly quipped to a colleague: “that’s the fking point!”**
There it is, straight from the horse’s mouth. The intent isn’t to improve our democracy; it’s to protect the duopoly at a time when Australians are abandoning them in record numbers. He may be a senator for our state, but he is working for the party machine, not the people.
A Warning from Victoria, A Glimmer of Hope
We’ve already seen this playbook in Victoria, where similar laws were used to wipe out independents.
But there is hope. Those Victorian laws are also being challenged in the High Court. And in a stunning admission, the Victorian State Government has already conceded that parts of its own law are unconstitutional. It proves that these arrogant stitch-ups can be defeated.
The Fight for a Fair Go
That’s why community independent Zoe Daniel and former South Australian Senator Rex Patrick are taking the Federal Government to the High Court. Australia’s best legal minds agree that these laws aren’t just unfair, they’re likely unconstitutional.
But High Court challenges are expensive. They are counting on the major parties’ deep pockets to stop them from ever getting to court.
If you’re in a position to do so, please consider chipping in to support their legal challenge. This is a fight for the very soul of our democracy.
Why This Matters for Boothby
These laws were written with one purpose: to make sure a community-backed independent can never win in a place like Boothby. They want to ensure that the only choice you get is between two sides of the same party machine, a machine that answers to donors and lobbyists, not to you.
Our community deserves a representative who is truly accountable to us. Let’s stand with Zoe and Rex and send a clear message to the major parties: our democracy is not for sale.