There is no mention of parties in the Australian Constitution

The “defection” of Senator Dorinda Cox from the Greens to Labor has brought out the usual clap trap:

• She was only elected because of the Greens name.

• If she wants to join Labor she should resign from Parliament and run for Labor.

• The seat belongs to the Labor Party.

Bollocks. Complete and utter bollocks.

I have read the Australian constitution. More than once. And nowhere does it mention parties. Including believe it or not, Liberal, Labor or Green.

But before I continue, an important message. I don’t care about the Greens. I don’t care about Labor. I don’t care about the Liberals. I care about Australia. As far as I am concerned, a pox on all of them.

Back to matters at hand.

The reason we have such issues is because this construct of the party owning the senate seat and the crazy table cloth ballot paper and the incomprehensible preference system has been design and implemented - by, for, and to the benefit of the parties. Not the people but the parties and the polies.

Section 9 of the constitition is quite clear on the matter:

The Parliament of the Commonwealth may make laws prescribing the method of choosing senators, but so that the method shall be uniform for all the States. Subject to any such law, the Parliament of each State may make laws⁶ prescribing the method of choosing the senators for that State.

Notice how parties are not mentioned.

The Parliament will design the method for choosing sentators. It could design a first past the post system. It could do it by sortition. Toss of a coin, roll of the dice.

The problem with Senators switching parties is a side effect of the stupid system they designed for themselves. So as far as I am concern, to hell with them all.

There is no need, once a sentator resigns, to allocate the “seat” to the party. There can be an election. There can be raffle. The states can nominate, as they used to.

The senate does not belong to the parties. It more accurately belongs to the states. But ultimately it belongs to the people.

This charade is just a continuation of the anti-democratic, anti-competition systems the parties have put in place to protect their interests, not those of the people.

To hell with them all as far as I am concerned. Let them play musical chairs.