Dean Jaensch: The eggs caused no injuries but they were a precedent. What next will be thrown?

This is probably the lowest standard federal election campaign seen in more than four decades. Here’s how we can ensure we never have one like it again, Dean Jaensch writes.

This is probably the lowest standard federal election campaign seen in more than four decades.

The last lap of the election is a good time to summarise the campaign. A record number of candidates have had their party endorsement removed for unacceptable and/or disgraceful behaviour and there has been two cases of violence.

The eggs caused no injuries but they were a precedent. What next will be thrown?

Some party tactics were deeply worrying: The appearance of anti-Semitism, accusations of lying between the parties, a poisonous political culture throughout the campaign and a constant focus on the negative. Those who were social-media followers told me there was a plethora of nastiness permeating all of it, with constant personal attacks on parties and candidates.

Politics became polarised as never before. There were campaigns by non-party groups which focused totally on the negative in politics. A high level of intolerance dominated every component of the campaign.

A record number of electors voted early. The most common reason was that they had an expectation the campaign would be the same as usual, their issues would not be addressed, and they gave a clear impression that they had a gutful of the standard type of politics. They were not listening, and had low expectations.

There was a clear perception voters were expecting but not getting parties that behaved decently, would keep their promises and be clear about their values. Overall, there was a clear expression that the voters were disconnected from politics.

When the dust settles, and the new parliament is in place, the parties and the members need to consider what to do about the state of electoral politics. It would be depressing to think that what we have seen in the past weeks will continue into the future. What is needed is a formal convention of the parliament, leading to legislation on changes necessary to ensure that an election like this one never happens again.

The reason this is urgent is found in two recent reputable surveys: Only 42 per cent of Australians felt Australian democracy was working well; and 52 per cent of young Australians thought democracy was the best form of government. Those findings are scary.

The task of this plenary session should cover structures and processes and rules which will encourage democracy.

The first and overarching change should be the introduction of enforceable laws which will ensure truth in political advertising, and not only during elections. The second would enforce optional preferences in all federal elections. The third would be a commitment to morality in politics by all members.