Ballots are still being counted from the May 21 election, but it’s already clear that Australians delivered a stunning rebuke of the ruling conservative Liberal-National coalition government, which had refused to take meaningful action on climate change.
Not only did voters replace Prime Minister Scott Morrison of the Liberal Party with Anthony Albanese, of the center-left Labor Party, who has promised tougher emissions targets, but they also put in power several so-called “teal” independents. Their name combines the blue of the Liberal Party, with whom many of the candidates shared conservative fiscal policy ideas, and green to capture their views on climate action.
About 20 teal independents–mostly women–ran in seats traditionally held by Liberal politicians in some of Australia’s richest electorates. They promised their constituents that they’d take a science-based response to the climate crisis. Most teal independents are...
English (US) ·