Evolving membership strategies in Australian political parties

Abstract

Like parties elsewhere, the Australian parties have witnessed a decline in membership activism in recent years and some have suggested that near memberless parties may become the norm. Drawing on elite interviews, party documents and examination of recent organisational reforms, we argue that parties continue to need members and view their involvement as essential to achieving their objectives. In response to declining rates of activism parties have begun to experiment with different forms of membership, such as policy branches, and to expand the traditional notion of membership to include ‘supporters’. We show that membership is a flexible concept that is used by parties to fulfil their institutional functions and electoral objectives, and is defined in unique ways in each sphere of activity. We suggest that accounts of party decline relying on formal membership numbers may be inaccurate.

同其他国家的政党一样，澳大利亚的政党近年来也经历了党员参与的滑坡，以至有人认为无党员政党会成为常态。笔者根据对精英的访谈、政党的文献以及对近年组织改革的考察，指出政党还是要有党员的，党员的参与对于实现政党的目标至关重要。针对参与率走低的情况，一些政党开始尝试不同的参与形式，如政策支部，并延展传统的党员概念，把支持者也包括进来。党员是一个灵活的概念，一些政党用它来实现其体制功能和竞选目的，在每一个活动范围内都有独特的定义。根据正式成员人数统计出来的政党参与走低，是不准确的。

Keywords:

• political parties
• party members and functions
• party activism
• Australian politics

Notes

¹Traditionally, union membership has been a requirement for joining the ALP, although branches are now being urged to repeal these rules (Shorten 2014). At the organisational level (as distinct from the individual level), unions are able to affiliate to the party and constitute 50 per cent of voting delegates at party conferences (Bramble and Kuhn 2009; Cook 2012).

²Interviews were conducted with nine party officials in December 2011 and July 2013. All interview subjects held senior positions with either the ALP or the Liberal Party at the state or national level. Interviews were conducted in Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney. Interview subjects were promised anonymity and thus are not named. Those interviewed were asked to expand on material found in party documents, to describe new initiatives relating to party membership and generally about the relationship between party supporters on the ground and the party's central elites. For the most part, party officials told remarkably similar stories and these have helped to inform our analysis throughout. Where a subject used a particularly illuminating phrase or made a unique point, this is noted in the text.