Honest Government Ad | Minority Government

Dear Patrons

Here is the latest Honest Government Ad you've helped us to produce!

Honest Government Ad | Minority Government

This was a challenging one coz let's face it, “minority government” is not the sexiest topic for a YouTube video. Thankfully here at the Juice Media we’ve developed a knack for explaining seemingly “boring” (but actually really interesting) political concepts to a lay audience. But even so I had to call in some reinforcements for this one: fire-breathing dragons, giant apes and cars falling from the sky. My kids are now thoroughly confused as to what I do for a living.

(Actually, they already were: Luca has been telling friends at school that his dad works for the Australian Government.)

Anyway, back to minority governments.

If you've been keeping an eye on things, you'll already know that Australia will probably get a minority government at the coming election. The primary vote of both major parties is at a historic low, Labor barely won with a 1 seat majority in 2022, and it's not nearly as strong in 2025 (and who can blame it: Morrison is gone). So the question isn't so much, will we have a minority government, but who will lead it: Albo or Dutton?

And that is why I wanted to make an HGA that helps people understand what Minority Governments are.

Because once the election is formally announced, you can expect to see an avalanche of pearl-clutching and fear-mongering from SkyNews / Advance about minority governments. (Which must seem odd to folks in places like Norway and Denmark which haven't had a single-party government for over a century; but hey, welcome to Australia).

These fear campaigns are targeted primarily at Liberal Party voters; the same voters who were crucial in helping to defeat the Coalition at the 2022 election by electing Community Independents in a half a dozen former Liberal seats; thereby forcing the Libs to spend millions to defend their "safe seats" instead of using that money to fight Labor in marginal seats that Labor only barely won.

And if Sky News convinces enough voters that the sky will fall under a Labor minority government, we could see some of those Independent seats returning to the Liberal Party, thus making the prospect of a Dutton-led minority government much more likely.

And that is why we're not only helping to explain what minority governments are; but also supporting some of the Not-Shit Community Independents running in approximately 30 liberal/conseervative-leaning seats; seats where Labor/Greens have little-to-no chance of winning, and where they are thus the best line of defence against keeping Dutton out of the Lodge.

A minority government isn’t a silver bullet: if Labor and the Coalition agree on something (and they agree on more than most people realise), they will still be able to pass legislation on their own. Which is why claims that Minor Parties and Independents will be able to take governments "hostage" and "block bills" are another form of fear-mongering: since it's only when Labor and the Coalition disagree, that the Crossbench gets the deciding vote. And when that happens, a Crossbench filled with Not-Shit Community Independents and Minor Parties who vote better than Liberal/Nat MPs (who would otherwise be in those seats), can only be a good thing for Australia and Australians.

Anyway, that's why we made this HGA. I hope you enjoy it and if so, please give it a share - especially your Liberal-leaning rellies and friends - if you have any ;)

Honest Government Ad | Minority Government

As you can see, we are putting out episodes quicker than usual. We'll continue to do this between now and the election, which will now definitely take place in the first half of May. Our goal is to help keep voters informed about how our Parliament and voting system works as we approach election day.

And I am heartened to see many others contributing to this work of educating voters, from CheekMedia and Build-a-Ballot, to Punters Politics and OG Independent Tony Windsor (here in conversation with David Pocock), Michael West Media and others. Even Friendlyjordies, with whom we might not agree on everything, are working hard to highlight Labor’s achievements, which are undoubtedly better than the previous Coalition government's (not that that’s a very high bar)

We might not agree on everything, but we are all part of a bigger movement towards a more participatory form of democracy emerging in Australian society, a movement whose foundations are literally being built on the increased political literacy and engagement of Australian voters. Which is why I hope Australia will set an example for the world at the 2025 election, at a time when trust in democracy is in decline.

If the Juice Media has contributed to this movement in a meaningful way, it’s entirely thanks to the support you give us each month here on Patreon. So, thank you for making that possible.

Ok, that’s all for now! Sorry for the slight delay in sharing this HGA with you all - I normally do it straight away, but by the time we published the video last night, I was too fried to write the kind of post I wanted to. So thanks for your patience!

For our next HGAs:

• I'm considering an HGA that explains just how bad things would be under Prime Minister Dutton. If you like the idea, please share your suggestions for the top 3 shit things we can expect from a Coalition (aka Liberal/National Minority!) Government

• We are also looking into a quick HGA about Canada’s upcoming election (if you thought Australia had a crucial election coming up, take a look at our poor Canadian friends!)

• We'll continue making videos to help keep voters informed ahead of the coming election: if you have any suggestions for other topics you’d like to see us cover, let us know in the comments.

I’ll catch you soon with our next HGA.

Until then, take care!
Giordano & team