Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House

Democracy

How it works, why it matters and the power of your role in it.

Democracy 101

What is democracy?

What is democracy?

Photograph of a person holding a senate paper.

Australian democracy

Australian democracy

A mother holds her baby and smiles at the camera at the front of Old Parliament House. A row of people waiting to vote are behind her. She holds a sausage sandwich.

What is a referendum?

What is a referendum?

Two people being handed information at a polling booth in a hall with orange curtains.

The sizzling history of the democracy sausage

The sizzling history of the democracy sausage

Two women wearing brightly coloured purple tops and a man in a jacket and hat stand in front of Old Parliament House holding sausage sandwiches.

What is a double dissolution?

What is a double dissolution?

Hazel and Bob Hawke sit with three journalists at a table in the National Tally Room in 1983. There is a large map of Australia behind them on the wall.

The Australian Constitution: what it is and how it affects you

The Australian Constitution: what it is and how it affects you

The front cover of the Australian Constitution dated 9th July 1900. A red ribbon on left side binds the papers together.

'WE'VE BEEN SACKED': THE 1975 WHITLAM GOVERNMENT DISMISSAL

For the first time in Australian history, the governor-general dismissed a prime minister and government. How did this constitutional crisis happen?

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Gough Whitlam on the steps of Old Parliament House surrounded by the press who are holding microphones and video cameras on 11 November 1975.

Election toolkit

How to vote in Australia

How to vote in Australia

People wearing colourful boardshorts and beachwear stand at polling booths at a polling station in Sydney's Bondi Beach.

How elections are called in Australia

How elections are called in Australia

Hands place green and white ballot papers into white and purple ballot boxes.

When are elections held in Australia?

When are elections held in Australia?

Two red banners, one directing ACT voters and one for interstate voters stand on either side of a doorway filled with people in Old Parliament House.

Election campaigning in Australia

Election campaigning in Australia

People vote in cardboard booths at Old Parliament House.

What is the secret ballot?

What is the secret ballot?

A voter puts a ballot paper in a cardboard ballot box while an AEC official dressed in a purple AEC vest looks on. They are in King's Hall in Old Parliament House.

How are votes counted?

How are votes counted?

Officials in yellow and purple vests count green ballot paper votes on a table in Old Parliament House.

Misinformation and democracy

What is the difference between misinformation and disinformation?

What is the difference between misinformation and disinformation?

Detail of a curved banister on a flight of stairs in Old Parliament House.

The history of misinformation and disinformation

The history of misinformation and disinformation

Detail of a ceiling in Old Parliament House.

How to spot and respond to misinformation and disinformation

How to spot and respond to misinformation and disinformation

Decorative wood detailing on a panel in Old Parliament House.

MISINFORMATION EXPLAINED

Misinformation? Disinformation? What do these terms mean, why should you care, and what does it have to do with democracy?

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Parquetry floorboards in Old Parliament House.

Milestones in Australian democracy

Prime minister biographies

Prime minister biographies

MP John Brumby (left) and Prime Minister Bob Hawke (centre) join colleagues in the Senate Committee Room for a beer and a laugh.

Founding documents of our democracy

Founding documents of our democracy

A white parchment with blue elegant calligraphy and the title Victoria Regin AE AD 1894.

Every election speech from 1901 - 2022

Every election speech from 1901 - 2022

A row of desks in a U shape with green leather.