Everything You Need to Know About the Australian Election: From Nuclear to Democracy Sausages

The general election in Australia will commence on Sunday (3/5/2025). Economic issues and renewable energy have become the focus of 18 million citizens who will vote for political parties to fill the parliament and subsequently the prime minister.

Polling places across Australia are open from 08:00 to 18:00. The two largest competing political parties in Australia are the Labor Party, which is left-leaning. The incumbent Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is from this party.

The opponent is the Liberal-National Party, which has a center-right orientation. The leader is Peter Dutton, a former Minister of Defense during the tenure of Prime Minister Scott Morrison (2018-2022).

Both come from working-class family backgrounds. Albanese was raised by a single mother. His father is an immigrant from Italy and separated from his mother when Albanese was still a toddler.

His mother worked as a cleaner and later became a person with disabilities due to suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Albanese has been a cadre of the Labor Party since his teenage years. He took on various part-time jobs to finance his studies in economics at the University of Sydney.

Meanwhile, Peter Dutton is the son of a construction worker. Like Albanese, he also worked part-time to finance his education and became a member of the Liberal Party since his teenage years. This party later merged with the National Party to form the Liberal-National Party with conservative views.

Dutton joined the Queensland police force. After several years, he also attended university and majored in business. It took him ten years to graduate amidst his busy schedule as a law enforcement officer.

In this election, voters, particularly young voters, are concerned about the impact of the import tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on inflation and recession. One of the effects is the stagnation of the transition to renewable energy.

Due to this issue, political observers predict that neither the Labor Party nor the Liberal-National Party will be able to win the majority of the 150 seats in parliament. Support for independent candidates advocating for environmental issues and equality is strengthening and attracting the majority of votes away from both major parties.

Albanese has pledged to build more solar and wind farms, with Australia aiming to be net-zero by 2050.

On the other hand, Dutton wants to build nuclear power plants. Australia is rich in uranium, which he believes would be wasteful if not utilized. Moreover, many European countries are also developing nuclear power plants, including France and the United Kingdom.

"Nuclear energy is cheaper and more stable because it doesn't depend on natural changes," Dutton said.

Dave Sweeney, a nuclear expert at the Australian Conservation Foundation, considers this a bad idea. The country is already halfway towards renewable energy. Building nuclear power plants means going back to square one.

Other countries have had nuclear power plants since the 1950s and they are modernizing existing technology. "They are at the stage of development, not building from scratch. If Australia were to build a nuclear power plant, it would take a very long time," said Sweeney.

Albanese himself is not exempt from criticism. Young voters believe that his administration has been slow to phase out coal-fired power plants. "When will you listen to us?" shouted the youth during Albanese's campaign.

In an interview with CNN, political communication lecturer at La Trobe University, Andrea Carson, stated that campaign issues are heavily influenced by social media. Environmental issues are the most popular due to their widespread impact.

However, the narrative war on social media is not accompanied by fact-checking. Regulations in Australia regarding social media are not yet binding to present verified data and sources related to political campaigns.

In addition to environmental issues and the recession due to Trump's tariffs, the elections in Australia are also marked by a spirit of camaraderie. In accordance with tradition, this election also features a "democracy sausage."

The origins of this activity and term are unclear. However, in Australia, during every election, there are always volunteers who set up hotdog stalls, which consist of grilled sausages placed on white bread and topped with sauces and other condiments.

Alex Dawson, Spokesperson for Democracy Sausage, said that since a few weeks before the election, they have informed the location of the hotdog stalls. Not all polling places provide democracy sausages. Information can be obtained from the page democracysausage.org.

These sausages are available in various types, including pork sausages, halal sausages, gluten-free sausages, and vegetarian sausages. They also offer coffee and cakes as accompaniments to the dishes. According to data from 2022, out of 7,000 polling stations in Australia, 2,200 provided democracy sausages.

"We want this election to be a celebration of the Australian community spirit," Dawson said.

The tradition of cooking during elections, according to the book "From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage" by Judith Brett, a political science lecturer at La Trobe University, began in 1920. Initially, wet and dry cakes were provided at polling stations.

"The intention is to attract people's interest in exercising their right to vote," Brett wrote.

In the 1980s, portable electric grilling technology emerged. Hotdogs began to be sold at low prices at several polling stations. Ultimately, this trend of democracy sausages surged. Moreover, in Australia, elections are always held on Saturdays or Sundays.

The atmosphere at the polling station was designed to resemble a picnic area. Residents who had cast their votes then purchased sausages and sat down to chat with other community members. The spirit of harmony among residents was evident here.

"This sausage is also a symbol of the background of Australian society. We are descendants of workers who have achieved success through hard work," said Brett.

Not only the residents, but also the politicians who have just cast their votes do not hesitate to indulge in sausages. In fact, sausages are categorized as the cheapest processed meat products because they are made from offal, trimmings, and leftover meat that is not consumed in its entirety. (AP/AFP)