Political parties that edge closer to political power tend to slowly get invaded by careerist politicians put forth by lobby groups intent on maintaining the status quo.

This is how most Labor parties end up meek allies of capital - career politicians injected into the parties are funded by, promoted by and supported by institutions that owe their allegiance to capital. It's very much the safe route into politics that ends with a cushy job (which is critical coz most political careers end in failure). These people are often the best at co-opting political machinery (e.g. getting on the right committees, swinging important but less visible votes, figuring out how to get "difficult" members ejected based upon trumped up accusations of racism).

For anyone else taking a political career route you risk ending up unsupported, overworked, villified and subsequently ejected into unemployment.

If attempts to co-opt political groups edging closer to power using internal party political machinery fail, there's always a media under the full control of the upper classes that can villify individual politicians that are a threat, which a good 1/2-2/3 of the population will usually believe. Sometimes this works hand in hand (e.g. creating a facade of "unelectability" via the media and then using that internally to nix career progression).

None of this happens in parties with zero chance of getting into power (e.g. most green parties) so ironically they often end up with the best platforms.

How naive to think governments ever give back powers.

How pessimistic to think they can't!

This problem was created by believing in the lie of representative government; believing in it harder won’t solve it.

Care to give some examples of when this has happened?

It's never happened because Australians would never vote Green. Aside from having the public image as a bunch of hippies and crackpots, a huge chunk of our voter base just want to sit on their nest eggs, which the Libs (current govt.) promise to help with. Another huge chunk just vote how their parents vote.

The only reason Australians (generalising) vote at all, is because we'd get fined if we didn't. With donkey votes (vandalised ballots) counted as votes for the current government, this country exists to hold the status quo.

>With donkey votes (vandalised ballots) counted as votes for the current government

That is completely untrue. Informal votes are not counted at all.

That's odd. In the UK spoiled ballots are quite definitely counted.

"The number of Blank Votes and Spoiled Ballots are read out at the count, along with the results and are also included in subsequent reports. Your apathy towards the political parties will be heard not just forgotten."

https://votingcounts.org.uk/spoilt-ballot

My apologies, bad wording.

They're counted here too - just not towards any particular political party.

A "donkey vote" isn't a vandalised ballot. It's one where you vote by not considering the candidate, but voting by a simple order, usually numbering from top to bottom of the ballot.

Usually it is highlighted when an unlikely candidate gets a better than expected result, and the pundits would attribute it to the "donkey vote"

> With donkey votes (vandalised ballots) counted as votes for the current government

I've never heard that before. Do you have a link?

Sorry - invalid votes aren’t counted, they are ignored.

Read about our government here in Canberra where we have Labor Green coalition.

https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7273583/bandt-looks-t...

Canada’s NDP under Thomas Mulclair running against the Liberals.