Australia's Green Party - "Growing Pains?"

The Australian Green Party has seen significant growth recently. In the past election alone, they’ve increased their seats in Congress from 6 to 9. They now have the support of almost 12 percent of the population, and have now emerged as the third largest party in Australia. With Australia operating under a proportional election system, this means something.

However, the Green Party’s success is not without its “growing pains.” In an effort to grow the party, the Greens have expanded their platform from its original stance on protecting the environment, to incorporating other issues of interest among the Australian electorate. In this effort to grow the party, a growing rift is forming from within. The leftist Greens remain staunch on the party’s original value of environmental protection, but the moderate Greens are moving toward the center, compromising on less than ideal policies to get something rather than nothing.

It can be thought that this movement to the center is an attempt by Green party members to get the swing vote on the party lines between the Green party and the Labor party in an effort to grow the party. Refer to the following graph:

If the electoral distribution is like that of a bell curve, it can be argued that growth in the Green party is primarily along the line between the Green Party and Labor party. The recent growth within the party is due to the willingness of party members to shift ideology further right, appealing to more voters. Party leaders have admitted they are pursuing a course toward replacing the current major parties in office. They want to see their party become the dominant party in Australia. However, critics of the party claim that party support is nearing its peak. According to the bell curve distribution of the electorate, the critics may be right. No one knows how much more support the Green Party may gain, but it is no doubt limited. There is no way the Green party can acquire its goal of obtaining a majority without shifting its ideology further right. However, doing this risks further separation within the party. A continual shift may then mean more than just growing pains, it could be the beginnings of an eventual split.