Victoria abolishes group voting tickets, shifting preference power from parties to voters

Victoria's upper house voted 33–4 on 11 August 2026 to abolish group voting tickets, making Victoria the last Australian upper house to do so. Voters must now number at least five parties above the line, directing preferences themselves. Analyst Antony Green says the old system let roughly 20 candidates win seats in a decade with under 6% of the vote. The change takes effect for November's state election.