As eyes across Australia remain glued to the excruciating drip-feed of inconclusive US election results, it is in stark contrast to what happened last Saturday night at an outer-Brisbane fishing club called the Blue Fin. Mere hours after polls in the Queensland election had closed, despite an unprecedented number of postal and early votes, the Queensland Premier announced there she had secured an election victory.

It may seem unremarkable to most Australians, but as the parallel experience in the US unfolds today and the slow count continues, it should spur us all to cherish this simple success of our democracy: an election result, delivered quickly, confidently, and independent of partisan political interference.