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Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

<< Thread Modifed May 6 at 5:08AM >>

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Why Conservatives Were Shellacked in the 2025 Australian Federal Election

And Why Canada’s Conservatives Should Have Seen It Coming

The 2025 Australian federal election delivered a historic rebuke to the conservative Coalition — a result as emphatic as it was unexpected. For much of the year, the opposition led in the polls, with widespread public frustration over rising living costs and a perceived drop in living standards. Many Australians felt they were going backwards, and few expected the Albanese government to be returned — let alone with a strengthened mandate.

But that’s exactly what happened. And remarkably, it wasn’t an isolated event.

Just months earlier, Canada’s Conservative Party had suffered a strikingly similar defeat, despite also leading in early polling. In both countries, centre-left governments defied expectations and expanded their hold on power, while conservative challengers floundered despite voter discontent. The parallels are too strong to ignore — and too important not to unpack.

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Alienating Women and the Young: A Common Mistake

One of the most glaring failures in both elections was the conservative misreading of women and younger voters — demographics that hold increasing electoral power.

In Australia, the Coalition alienated women by proposing to end remote work for federal public servants — a move seen as tone-deaf to the needs of working families. In Canada, a similar narrative played out as conservatives framed work-from-home flexibility as a "lazy" entitlement, drawing backlash from professional women and urban voters.

Both campaigns also failed to connect with millennials and Gen Z, who now make up the largest voting bloc in both countries. Instead of policies on housing affordability, education, or climate action, conservative leaders focused on reviving "traditional values" and fighting "wokeism." In Australia, this meant invoking the Howard era — a time many younger voters barely remember or associate with outdated attitudes. In Canada, it was a return to Harper-style messaging. The result in both cases: younger voters walked away in droves.

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Climate Politics: Nuclear Was a Hard Sell

Another shared misstep was the push for nuclear power as a central climate policy — a move that looked bold on paper but crumbled under scrutiny.

In Australia, the Coalition promised to meet net-zero targets through a nuclear energy buildout. But with no existing nuclear industry, this meant voters would pay for decades before seeing any benefit. The policy was perceived as expensive, unrealistic, and a distraction from the renewable transition already underway.

Canada’s Conservatives similarly leaned into nuclear as a "serious" climate solution, but found themselves at odds with a public that preferred wind, solar, and battery investment — technologies already delivering results.

In both countries, nuclear came to symbolise a conservative resistance towards renewables — and voters punished them for it.

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Trumpism Doesn’t Translate Internationally

In both Australia and Canada, conservative leaders flirted with American-style populism — attacking "wokeism," demonising progressive values, and stoking culture wars. But what plays well in U.S. Republican circles doesn’t necessarily cross borders.

Australia’s Peter Dutton was increasingly seen as "Trump Lite", embracing hard-edged rhetoric and inflammatory talking points. In Canada, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s confrontational tone and social media-driven campaign also drew comparisons to U.S. right-wing tactics.

The result? Moderates recoiled. In both nations, the majority of voters showed they still preferred pragmatic leadership over performative outrage.

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Rejecting Cuts and Embracing Practical Reform

Both electorates were dealing with real frustrations: inflation, housing crises, and public service strain. But while centre-left governments responded with targeted cost-of-living relief, expanded healthcare access, and climate investment, conservatives in both countries focused on cuts and austerity.

In Australia, the Coalition proposed slashing over 40,000 public service jobs, while also resisting popular measures like bulk billing incentives and energy rebates. In Canada, similar promises to "trim government fat" and push back on climate spending rang hollow amid growing public demand for stronger services and sustainability.

Where progressives proposed reforms, conservatives offered rollbacks — and voters chose the future over the past.

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Conclusion: A Broader Realignment Is Underway

The 2025 Australian election wasn’t just a local story — it was part of a wider democratic shift. From Ottawa to Canberra, conservative parties are finding that what used to work — dog-whistling, austerity, nostalgia — no longer holds the same power in a changed world.

Modern electorates, particularly younger and urban voters, are increasingly values-driven. They want action on climate, respect for diversity, fairer economic systems, and governments that understand the challenges of 21st-century life. Women want autonomy, flexibility, and safety. Young people want vision and security. And no one wants to be talked down to or scared into submission.

The conservatives in Australia and Canada offered a platform built on grievance, resistance, and old answers. Their opponents offered adaptation, responsiveness, and reform.

The message was clear — and loud in both countries: evolve, or be left behind. 

 

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Once again, well done. I wish I could include my own Commonwealth nation in this, but sadly I cannot.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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When are your next country-wide elections, Emma? Do you think there is little chance of a similar trend?

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Not for another 4 years. The trouble is, we voted in the right direction last year, but they are making a mess of it, driving voters into the arms of the Trump Wannabe.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Say it again, Scarbrems.

Some don't want to see why people voted for Trump or conservatives. I live in Chicago, Illinois. We've had one party rule (Democrat) for over fifty years. Our city and state suck. If I spoke about it, no one in the forums would care or want to admit it terrible policies, mass corruption, and harm they've done.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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That's the crux of it, Lancelott.

The last government here was in for 14 years. For ten of those I wasn't living here. When I returned, I was genuinely shocked at how bad things were.

The current government got in on the back of how godawful the last 14 years of conservative government has been for our country. Only to find that Labour isn't Labour anymore (I knew that, it's why I didn't vote for them, despite being a lifelong Labour voter).

In these situations, opportunists like Farage rise to the top. I spoke before about the Tories having a revolving leadership door. Farage is different, he remains the leader, but creates new parties.

He is an adjutant. Good to have to needle the big guns, but would be disastrous as a leader.

We don't need a showboater. We need grass roots politicians who really want to address the causes of this nation's ills, instead of playing the lazy game of blaming Johnny Foreigner and playing to the gallery.

If my nation votes for his ilk, we'll deserve everything we get, but at least, because we've already shrunk so much in terms of international clout, it shouldn't impact the rest of the world.

Craig and Steve won't be here complaining about the brown-fingered one in 10 Downing Street. Funnily enough, he's one of the reasons we haven't got that clout any more.

People have short memories of how his last party (UKIP) campaigned so relentlessly using misinformation and downright lies to get us out of the EU, then, when it happened, slithered off to watch the chaos from a safe distance before re-emerging with a new party to capitalise on the mess left after the biggest mistake my country has made in recent history.

Not that I blame Farage entirely. I blame successive governments for making anything that comes out of that man's mouth sound like a remotely good idea

We are broke and isolated. knowing what I know, now, if it wasn't for my parents, I wouldn't have come back.

So in some ways, we can agree. Trump, like Farage, is a consequence of failure. If my nation votes Reform (that's if it still exists in 4 years) we might as well accept the final demise of the nation that was once among the richest in the world.

Farage would be the equivalent of my country handing in its notice.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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I'm curious, Lancellot. You say you've had the same representation for over 50 years. I'm wondering, if things are as awful as you say they are, why have the people not voted for change? If people at a federal, state or local level here are dissatisfied with the performance of their elected office bearers, they will be gone at the next election.

Are you suggesting that the corruption is so rampant that fair elections aren't possible in Chicago or Illinois? Or are you saying the people themselves are so corrupt they won't elect honest politicians? Or something else?

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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CD, you've often spoke about MAGA or Trump supporters as, well, you've called them everything in the book. You've expressed disbelief and outrage at them for voting for Trump and republicans again and again (despite the things 'you see' wrong). You've said, how can they not see what Trump is doing to their country? You've questioned their intelligence, morality, everything.

Well, if you can be a diehard Republican, then (not naming people) you can be a diehard Democrat or liberal. Illinois is a blue state, so is California, New York, and Washington. The people in NYC or Chicago will not elect a Republican nor will the people in San Francisco or Seattle, no matter how high the taxes or crime or corruption. They will not change.

The same could be said the other way for people in Texas or Montana or Alaska or even Florida. They are diehard Red.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Lancellot,

Obviously, I'm neither Democrat nor Republican, as we don't have those parties here. But we have progressive and conservative, representing, roughly, the left and right side of the spectrum.

With regard to our local politicians, I respect many of the leaders past and present from both sides - Gorton, Fraser and Turnbull for the conservatives, Gillard and Albanese for the progressives. Similarly, I could name several from both sides I have no time for whatsoever.

I reject your implication that I am determined to be anti-Trump because he is Republican, or for any other reason than that he is without a single redeeming feature, and totally incompetent for the position to which he was elected. I've never felt such revulsion and lack of agreement with any previous US President, conservative or liberal in my lifetime.

I am not a diehard anything. I have voted for progressives, conservatives, greens and other parties over the years, as I tend to focus on issues, not showboating by candidates.

I don't get why anyone would be a "diehard" anything. It makes no sense to me to pick a party and stick to it through hell and high water, regardless of the mayhem and pandemonium they might cause, and in spite of how damaging their policies might be.

To some extent, there are "dyed-in-the-wool" voters here. Traditionally, as a rough guide blue-collar workers have voted Labor, environmentalists, Green, city conservatives, Liberal and country conservatives, National.

But the past two or three federal elections have challenged these delineations. Independents have taken long-established conservative seats all over the country. Far fewer seats that used to be Labor have gone conservative. In general, most voters will make up their mind based on issues, not who their parents voted for.

What became extremely apparent in this election was that at the mention of a tiny fraction of the insanity Trump has pursued as policy being adopted by Australian conservatives, a very large number of them, perfectly understandably, jumped ship, as they did in Canada.

What puzzles me is why they don't in the states you mentioned.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Perhaps this can help you understand. I found the way this professor explains this interview revealing.

RE: Commonwealth nations say "no thanks" to Trumpism

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Ah, OK.

So your response is that Americans never change who they vote for because they are clueless? Well, if that was an example of an unbiased "professor" commenting on an unbiased "interview" conducted by an unbiased "reporter", with a random "citizen", I can see where you are coming from.

Fascinating "interview" technique, by the way.

What next? Would you like me to post a few of the hundreds of videos I've viewed of brainwashed MAGA supporters regurgitating the fairy tales they've been told?

So how does it work in Illinois? Are all the televisions hard-wired to receive only Democrat programming? Is there an internet filter blocking Trump's pearls of wisdom, so they never get to hear about all the great stuff he is doing?

Sorry, I'm still none the wiser.