Overview

The unit examines the Australian party system, including colonial-era pre-party politics, the development of major parties (Labor, Liberal and National) and minor parties (Greens, One Nation etc), parties and ideology, parties and social movements, internal party politics, parties and the law, parties and elections, parties and parliamentary politics, and parties and public policy. Emphasis is placed on how theoretical and comparative models of political parties help to explain Australian party politics.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Government and International Relations
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	12 credit points at 2000 level in International Relations or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Politics or 12 senior credit points from Government and International Relations
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	GOVT2114 or GOVT2104
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Todd Farrell, todd.farrell@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Take Home-Assessment Answering medium-response questions in a 72 hour window during exam period.	30%	Formal exam period Due date: 17 Nov 2022 at 23:59 Closing date: 18 Nov 2022	1500 words
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Participation Participation in course material, both in class and on the Canvas	10%	Ongoing	n/a
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Digital review Review of Australian political parties' digital platform (FB/Website etc.)	20%	Week 06 Due date: 06 Sep 2022 at 23:59	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Briefing Paper/Essay Proposal for internal party reform or essay regarding unit content	40%	Week 11 Due date: 21 Oct 2022 at 23:59	2000 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction: Political parties in Australia	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 02	Party system Origins and Terminology	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 03	The Australian Labor Party	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 04	The Liberal-National Coalition	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 05	The Australian Greens and Pauline Hanson’s One Nation Party	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 06	Minor parties and Teal independents	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 07	Leaders and representatives	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 08	Party government	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 09	Documentary week ‘The Killing Season’	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 10	Campaigns	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Voter behaviour	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Party reform	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 13	Review and conclusions	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Reading Requirements

Textbook

Miragliotta, Narelle, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) (2015) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Can be purchased online from Monash University Press or Kogan (low stocks!)

https://publishing.monash.edu/product/contemporary-australian-political-party-organisations/

https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/shoptheglobe-contemporary-australian-political-party-organisations-61-60717038-au/

Reading List

Week 1 (1 August): Introduction: Political parties in Australia

Anika Gauja, Narelle Miragliotta and Rodney Smith (2015) ‘Introduction’ in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Russell J. Dalton, David M. Farrell and Ian McAllister (2011) Political Parties and Democratic Linkage: How Parties Organize Democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press. [Chapter 1 – Parties and Representative Government, pp. 3-21]

Recommended reading:

Richard Katz and Peter Mair (2009) ‘The Cartel Party Thesis: A Restatement’, Perspectives on Politics, vol. 7, no. 4, pp. 753-766.

Week 2 (8 August): Party System Terminology and Australian Origins

Charles Richardson (2009) ‘Fusion: The party system we had to have?’, Policy, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 13-19.

Giovanni Sartori (1976/2005) Parties and party systems: A framework for analysis (reprint), Colchester: ECPR Press [Chapter 5 – The Numerical Criterion, pp. 105-115]

Zareh Ghazarian (2019) ‘The Australian party system’, in Peter Chen and others (eds.) Australian Politics and Policy: Senior Edition, Sydney, Sydney University Press, pp. 106-124

Week 3 (15 August): The Australian Labor Party

Nick Economou (2015) ‘Chapter 1: Democracy, Oligarchy or Polyarchy? Intra Party Politics and the Australian Labor Party’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Craig Emerson and Jay Weatherill (2019) Review of Labor’s 2019 Federal Election Campaign. Canberra: The Australian Labor Party. [skim read this and read executive summary, as well as some recommendations]

Recommended reading:

Glenn Kefford (2014) ‘Agency, institutional stretch and structural adjustment: The Australian Labor Party 2006-2013’, Party Politics, vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 512-521.

Week 4 (22 August): The Liberal / National Coalition

Wayne Errington (2015) ‘Chapter 2: The Liberal Party: Electoral Success Despite Organizational Drift’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Brian Costar (2015) ‘Chapter 3: The Nationals: A Resilient Party’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Recommended reading:

Melleuish, G. (2017) Australian politics explainer: Robert Menzies and the birth of the Liberal-National coalition, The Conversation, 10 April, pp1-3.

Week 5 (29 August): The Greens / One Nation

Stewart Jackson (2015) ‘The Australian Greens’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Murray Goot (2006) ‘The Australian Party System, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and the Party Cartelization Thesis’, in Ian Marsh, (ed) Political Parties in Transition? Leichhardt: Federation Press

Recommended reading:

Narelle Miragliotta (2012) ‘From Local to National: Explaining the Formation of the Australian Green Party’, Party Politics, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 409-425.

Philip Ayres (2016) ‘Pauline Hanson and the Demise of Political Duopoly’, Quadrant, vol. 60, no. 9, pp. 32-35.

Week 6 (5 September): Minor parties and teal independents

Glenn Kefford and Duncan McDonnell, 2018, ‘Inside the personal party: Leader-owners, light organisation and limited lifespans’, British Journal of Politics and International Relations, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 379-394.

James Murphy (2020) ‘Fifty Shades of teal’, Pursuit, viewed 29 June 2022, <https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/fifty-shades-of-teal>.

Carolyn M Hendriks (2017), ‘Citizen-led democratic reform: innovations in Indi’, Australian Journal of Political Science, vol. 52, no. 4, pp. 481-499.

Recommended reading:

Glenn Kefford (2018) ‘The Minor Parties’ Campaigns’, in Anika Gauja, Peter Chen, Jennifer Curtin and Juliet Pietsch, (eds.) Double Disillusion: The 2016 Australian Federal Election. Canberra: ANU Press.

Zareh Ghazarian (2015) ‘Chapter 5: Organisational Approaches of the Right-of-Centre Minor Parties in Australia’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Week 7 (12 September): Leaders and representatives

William P. Cross and Anika Gauja (2019) ‘Selecting party leaders, reform processes and methods: Examining the Australian and New Zealand Labour parties’, International Political Science Review.

Anika Gauja (2015) ‘Political Parties and Candidate Selection’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Recommended reading:

Katrine Beauregard (2018) ‘Partisanship and the gender gap: support for gender quotas in Australia’, Australian Journal of Political Science, vol. 53, no. 3, pp. 290-319.

Glenn Kefford (2013) ‘The Presidentialisation of Australian Politics? Kevin Rudd's Leadership of the Australian Labor Party’, Australian Journal of Political Science, vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 135-146.

William P. Cross and Andre Blais (2012) ‘Who Selects the Party Leader’, Party Politics, vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 127-150.

Week 8 (19 September): Party government

Rodney Smith (2015) ‘Chapter 14: Disciplined Parties and Australian Parliamentary Politics’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Gareth Griffiths (2010) ‘Minority Governments in Australia 1989-2009: Accords, Charters and Agreements’, New South Wales Parliamentary Library, Background Paper 1/10.

Recommended reading:
Peter Mair (2008) ‘The Challenge to Party Government’, West European Politics, vol. 31,
nos. 1-2, pp. 211-234.

Josh Holloway (2019) Measuring minor party impact: The Australian Greens in a changing Party System, Phd Thesis, Flinders University. [Chapter 10—The Labor-Greens Support Agreement: The Lasting Costs and Ephemeral Benefits of Support Party Status, pp. 196-223]

Week 9 (3 October): Documentary week ‘The Killing Season’ (No lectures)

Available to watch on the ABC website: https://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/killing-season/episode-1/

Episode 1 – The Prime Minister and his Loyal Deputy (2006-2009)
Episode 2 – Great Moral Challenge (2009 – 2010)
Episode 3 – The Long Shadow (2010-2013)

Watch at least two of the three episodes, and come to tutorials prepared to discuss.

Week 10 (10 October): Campaigns

Stephen Mills (2015) ‘Chapter 10: Parties and Campaigning’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Haydon Manning (2015) ‘Chapter 12: Major Party Techniques for Hunting the Swinging Voter’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Recommended reading:

Peter Chen (2013) Australian Politics in a Digital Age, Canberra: ANU Press, Chapter 1 ‘Contextualising our Digital Age’, pp. 1-15.

Ariadne Vromen (2017) Digital Citizenship and Political Engagement, London: Palgrave Macmillan, Chapter 4 ‘Hybrid Online Campaigning Organisations’, pp. 77-126.

Week 11 (17 October): Voter behavior

Ian McAllister (2011) The Australian Voter: 50 Years of Change. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press. [Chapter 2: Party loyalties pp. 33-55 and Chapter 7: Economic beliefs pp. 172-202]

Nicholas Biddle and Ian McAllister (2022) ‘Explaining the 2022 Australian Federal Election result’, Centre for Social Research and Methods, Audtralian National University, viewed 29 June 2022, <https://csrm.cass.anu.edu.au/research/publications/explaining-2022-australian-federal-election-result>.

Recommended Reading:

Sarah Cameron and Ian McAllister (2020) ‘Policies and performance in the 2019 Australian federal election’, Working paper.

Sarah Cameron and Ian McAllister (2019) The 2019 Australian Federal Election: Results from the Australian Election Study. Canberra: The Australian National University. Available from: www.australianelectionstudy.org

Week 12 (24 October): Party reform

Nicholas Barry (2015) ‘Chapter 13: Party Reviews and Organisational Reform’, in Narelle Miragliotta, Anika Gauja, and Rodney Smith, (eds.) Contemporary Australian Political Party Organisations. Melbourne: Monash University Press.

Paul Whiteley (2011) ‘Is the Party Over? The Decline of Party Activism and Membership Across the Democratic World’, Party Politics, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 21-44

Recommended reading:

Anika Gauja (2017) ‘Chapter 5: The Process of Reform: When the Problem Becomes the Solution’, in Anika Gauja, Party Reform: The Causes, Challenges, and Consequences of Organisational Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Week 13 (31 October): Review and conclusions

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Develop an understanding of the political party system in Australia, including major and minor parties, how they developed over time, and their relevance for Australian politics today.
LO2. Develop an understanding of the role of political parties in the Australian political system including the selection of leaders and candidates, election campaigns, what explains voting for the different parties, and what parties do in government.
LO3. Develop an understanding of challenges to Australia's party system, potential reforms, and how Australia's party system compares to other democracies.
LO4. Develop skills to critically analyse political parties in Australia, including demonstrating an understanding of key concepts and being able to situate Australia in a broader cross-national context.
LO5. Develop written and oral communication skills through completion of assignments and participation in tutorials.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

New content has been integrated on party leaders, and voter behaviour.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Reading Requirements

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

GOVT3653: The Australian Political Party System

Semester 2, 2022 [Normal day] - Remote

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Reading Requirements

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect