Does the King have any power? What does the Monarchy do in Australia? Why is King Charles III Australia's King and does that mean he has a say in our laws? Well, let's explore the constitutional role and powers of the Monarch and their representatives - the Governor General and Governors - and how that has evolved over time. There are indeed royal powers - some are used regularly, some haven't been touched in decades, and some exist on paper but have not and likely never will be used. In this episode I'll explore the history of the power and influence of the King/Queen of Australia and how that's changed over the past 200 years to how it is now.

Here's a handy guide for you on how to fill in the two ballots for a NSW state election, and why they're different. I'll also explain how NSW has optional preferential voting and how that works. As always: who you vote for is up to you!  

Learn more about voting and NSW state elections at the official electoral commission website: https://elections.nsw.gov.au/   

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Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

The Government is the winning party at an election, but what about everyone else in Parliament? Well, the second largest group is the Opposition, led by the Leader of the Opposition, and they have an important role: hold the government to account and put forward an alternative idea for government in the aims of winning more seats at the next election. But how do they achieve that? How can they exercise their views, shape legislation, and have input, when not in government? And what does holding the government to account mean? To answer that I asked the Leader of the Opposition of South Australia and leader of the South Australian Liberal Party, David Speirs MP. Enjoy this interview about the role and function of the Opposition, and how it plays a key role in the function of Parliament when it comes to debate, voting, and shaping the laws for the state or country.  

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Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

While the average age of Members of Parliament hovers around 50, there are many passionate young people who are interested in politics and want to have their voice heard - so I sat down with the current youngest member of Australia's Parliament, WA Labor Senator Fatima Payman, to talk about young people in politics. How can young people get more involved? What advice is there for both people who want to be candidates or just want to know how to be more effective in calling for change? What barriers are there? We discuss all this and more, so enjoy!  

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Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

January 1st, 1901 - the day of federation. Australia becomes a country, a nation in its own right, and while there's still a lot more to its journey to becoming fully independent - this is a pivotal moment in Australian history where the federal government was formed, the constitution was written, revised, and tested by the public, and the public rallied behind the idea of uniting as a nation. 

This is the story of how people like Henry Parkes, father of federation, helped the movement grow from the 1880s all the way to its eventual success around 20 years later.  

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Music: Sad Trio Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

Sir Earle Christmas Grafton Page was the second shortest serving Prime Minister of Australia, but he has had a long lasting impact on Australian politics. In this episode I'll talk about why he has such an interestingly festive name, the beginnings of the Coalition, and how he became the first Country Party member to become Prime Minister - despite the fact that they had way less seats than other political parties.  

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Learn about Frank Forde: https://youtu.be/J_oRoTMb640   

Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land. 

Australia has had 31 Prime Ministers thus far - but how many of them share a name? Well, you'll be surprised just how incredibly popular one name is compared to every other. Yes, this is a bit of a silly one but there's a few fun facts in there about names. 

There's a few minor sound glitches, so I'll have to check my lapel - but one fun thing that didn't make it in the edit due to sound problems was that Joseph Lyons' name is Aloysius, which is a Latinisation of names like Luigi. I think that's a very cool name and also want to imagine him playing Mario Kart.  

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Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

What is party membership and what does it involve? Political parties are way more than just Members of Parliament but are actually made up of hundreds (if not thousands) of people coming together to support an idea or cause. Membership is valuable to you as a person in how it gives you a voice and important to shape the party itself - but don't just take my word for it. I sat down with people from three different political parties to ask them their thoughts on the why, what, how, and more, of party membership. Enjoy!  

Thank you to David Limbrick from Liberal Democrats, Jordon Steele-John from The Greens, and Tay Alers from The Nationals for their time and perspective. 

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Auspol Explained would like to acknowledge the Whadjuk Nyoongar people and their Elders as the owners and custodians of the Land that the video was filmed and edited on. This Land was stolen and never ceded. It always was and always will be Aboriginal Land.

This episode is all about how to fill in the ballot for the Victorian state election! I won't be telling you who to vote for or analysing policy, that's up to you - the voter - to decide for yourself. Instead I'll be explaining why there are two ballot papers, how the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council of Victoria are different, when voting happens, how to fill in your ballot correctly, and what you shouldn't do. Have fun, and enjoy democracy, Victoria! Make sure you're enrolled to vote and your details are up to date so you can have your voice heard.  

Learn more about Victorian state and local elections, including early voting options, at the Victorian Electoral Commission website: https://www.vec.vic.gov.au/

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