Love Australia or Leave was a
far-right
Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...
Australian political party
The politics of Australia has a mild two-party system, with two dominant political groupings in the Australian political system, the Australian Labor Party and the Liberal Party of Australia. Federally, 12 of the 151 members of the lower house ( ...
. The party was founded by Kim Vuga, a
Townsville
The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...
woman who came to prominence as a reality contestant in the
SBS Television
The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from tax revenue. SBS operates six TV channels ( SBS, SBS Viceland, SBS World Movies, SBS ...
program ''
Go Back to Where You Came From
"Go back to where you came from" is a racist or xenophobic epithet which is used in many countries, and it is mainly used to target actual immigrants and falsely presumed immigrants.
In contemporary United States, it is directed often at Asia ...
''. which sought to expose ordinary Australians to the situations faced by refugees and asylum seekers.
The party platform included
opposition to immigration
Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, is a political position that seeks to restrict immigration. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory in ...
,
Opposition to Islam, and removal of
Australia from the United Nations. The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism released a report on October 5, 2022, where it classified the party as an "anti-immigrant" and "anti-Muslim" group.
The party was registered in October 2016.
Its founder Kim Vuga unsuccessfully stood for election in the
federal election in July 2016 as an independent candidate to represent
Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
in the
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives.
The powers, role and composition of the Senate are set out in Chap ...
. She used the slogan "Love Australia or Leave" which has become the name of her party. It intended to be registered and stand candidates in the
2017 Queensland state election
The 2017 Queensland state election was held on 25 November 2017 to elect all 93 members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, the unicameral Parliament of Queensland.
The first-term incumbent Labor government, led by Premier Annastacia Pal ...
, but did not field any candidates at that election.
In 2017, Kim Vuga along with other far-right groups falsely circulated the claim that Australia's first female Muslim MP, Dr
Anne Aly
Anne Azza Aly (, born Azza Mahmoud Fawzi Hosseini Ali el Serougi, 29 March 1967) is an Australian politician who has been a Labor member of the House of Representatives since the 2016 election, representing the electorate of Cowan in Western ...
had refused to lay a wreath at an Anzac Day ceremony in Perth. Dr Aly stated it was obvious why she was being targeted by the group. Kim later apologised via Facebook for spreading the rumour.
The party ran candidates at the
2019 Australian federal election
The 2019 Australian federal election was held on Saturday, 18 May 2019, to elect members of the 46th Parliament of Australia. The election had been called following the dissolution of the 45th Parliament as elected at the 2016 double dissol ...
: one for the lower house seat of
Fisher
Fisher is an archaic term for a fisherman, revived as gender-neutral.
Fisher, Fishers or The Fisher may also refer to:
Places
Australia
* Division of Fisher, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives, in Queensland
*Elec ...
, two Senate candidates (Vuga and Gavin Wyatt) in Queensland, and one ungrouped Senate candidate in each of New South Wales and Tasmania.
The party was de-registered on 12 January 2022 by the
Australian Electoral Commission
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is the independent statutory agency of the Australian Government responsible for the management and oversight of Australian federal elections, plebiscites, referendums and some trade union
A ...
for failing to meet the increased registration requirement of 1500 members.
Federal parliament
See also
*
Islamophobia in Australia
Islamophobia in Australia is distrust and hostility towards Muslims, Islam, and those perceived as following the religion. This social aversion and bias is often facilitated and perpetuated in the media through the stereotyping of Muslims as vi ...
*
List of political parties in Australia
The politics of Australia has a mild two-party system, with two dominant political groupings in the Australian political system, the Australian Labor Party and the Liberal Party of Australia. Federally, 12 of the 151 members of the lower house ( ...
*
Australian nationalism
263px, Flag of Australia
Australian nationalism is the ideology, movement and sentiment that emphasizes the identity, culture, and interests of Australia as a nation-state, asserting the identity of Australians as a distinct nation, regardle ...
*
Far-right politics in Australia
Far-right politics in Australia describes authoritarian ideologies, including fascism and White supremacy as they manifest in Australia.
In Australia the far-right first came to public attention with the formation in 1931 of the New Guard in ...
References
External links
*
Defunct political parties in Australia
Australian nationalist parties
Anti-immigration politics in Australia
Criticism of multiculturalism
Anti-Islam sentiment in Australia
Far-right political parties in Australia
2016 establishments in Australia
2022 disestablishments in Australia
Political parties established in 2016
Political parties disestablished in 2022
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