For many journalists, the past – specifically the past before 1945 – is a foreign country.
Election coverage is replete with references to “firsts” or “milestones” that assume that Australian history began in the post-war period.
But a longer view would help us better understand the political processes around us.
Journalists described the 2010 federal election result as “Australia’s first hung parliament in 70 years”.
You could alternatively say that the 2010 election produced Australia’s seventh hung parliament.
No party or existing coalition won majorities in 1901, 1903, 1906, 1919, 1922 or 1940.
Minority governments depended on negotiation and collaboration for success and, indeed, survival.
As with those earlier elections, the 2010 result ensured that parliament played a role in keeping governments accountable.
Similarly, journalists said that the 2022 election produced a “record crossbench of at least 16”. But it is only a record in the post-war era.
