Christian commentators around the country have been dissecting the reasons for the Labor landslide victory in the federal election.
Their diverse reactions range from optimism to pessimism, from hope and opportunities to accusations of “sabotage”.
National Director of the Family First Party Lyle Shelton was upbeat and thanked the party’s supporters.
HOW FAMILY FIRST PARTY FARED
“The green shoot from the catastrophic election result was the re-emergence of Family First after a nine-year absence from the federal scene.”
“Family First polled more than 4% of the primary vote in 13 of the 92 electorates if contested.”
“Senate candidates achieved close to, or just over 2%, in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia”
HOW OTHER MINORITY CONSERVATIVE PARTIES PERFORMED
But they were often behind other minority conservative parties Trumpet of Patriots and People First, especially in Senate contests.
Those parties also ticked most of the boxes on the Australian Christian Values Checklist.
The combined vote of all three parties would have outpolled One Nation in most Senate races.
If they ever united with One Nation, these parties would make a powerful force for conservatives disaffected with the Liberal Party.
“THE LIBERAL PARTY IS ON LIFE SUPPORT”
Family First Senate candidate Bernie Finn observed: “The Liberal Party of Australia is terminal because it forgot why it exists.”
“It’s only a matter before life support is removed.”
“What we need is a new conservative party that knows what it believes in and has the courage to fight for those beliefs.”
“DUTTON WAS JUST WOEFULLY BAD”
High profile pro-life advocate Dr. Joanna Howe posted: “Going forward, the Liberal Party must decide: Is it the party of John Howard or the party of Malcolm Turnbull?”
“In Dutton, it was neither and in a presidential contest between Albo versus Dutton, Dutton was just woefully bad.”
“He failed to connect with ordinary Australians over cost of living issues.”
“For the Liberal Party to come back, it needs TRUE and COURAGEOUS leadership like what we see from Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price or Senator Alex Antic.”
“Unfortunately both are in the Senate.”
“THE LIBERALS’ TOP DOGS FAR TOO HOPELESS”
Bill Muehlenberg reflected in his Culture Watch blog: “The problem is that there are a number of good, strong Christians and conservatives in the Coalition and/or many good ones who ran for office.”
“But too often, the top dogs have just been far too hopeless.”
“Dutton threw away this election by being weak as water on so many key issues that really counted.”
“As long as there are leaders like this in charge, these guys will get nowhere fast!”
Like many Christian observers, Mr. Muehlenberg welcomed the loss of House of Representatives seats for the Greens, although they are likely to remain a force in the Senate.
“PETER DUTTON WAS SABOTAGED BY AN INSIDE JOB”
Former LNP MP George Christensen claimed Peter Dutton was ‘sabotaged” and undermined by his own side.
He wrote in his Nation First substack “Months ago, Dutton had the momentum. He was ahead in the polls. Australians were listening.”
“There was a clear plan, forged before Christmas, to start 2025 with a political onslaught: hit the ground running in January, frame the debate, take the fight to Labor early.”
“That plan came directly from Dutton’s office. A 12-point blueprint for restoring the nation – a structured, disciplined pitch to voters who were crying out for direction.”
“It may not have been flashy, but it was real. It had intent. It had direction.”
“And the political machine killed it. This was an inside job.”
“The real reason the Coalition lost: No contrast. No fight. No authenticity.”
“CHRISTIANS HAVE BEEN SILENT IN THE PUBLIC SQUARE”
Christian affairs writer Kurt Mahlburg posted on his Facebook page: “The bloodbath election results didn’t come out of nowhere.”
“They are, in large part, the consequence of Christians abandoning the public square.”
“For decades now, we’ve been told to keep our faith private, to stay quiet, to avoid mixing religion with politics. And for the most part, we listened.”
“SILENCE IS NO LONGER AN OPTION”
“And in our silence, others filled the vacuum with values and visions that don’t reflect the heart of this country or its foundations.
“We forgot our [Christian] roots and believed the lie that faith should stay behind closed doors.”
“Silence is no longer an option”
“The Christian voice has every right to be heard in Australia. It helped build this country. It gave us our values, our freedoms, even our Constitution.”
“And it’s time we found that voice again.”
“AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATIVES NEED A MARGARET THATCHER”
Queensland director of Family Voice Australia Andrew McColl told Vision Radio, the Liberals need to find an Australian Margaret Thatcher
“She responded to a widespread feeling [in the UK] that the Conservative Party had not defended conservative ideals explicitly and toughly enough, putting Britain on a course towards inevitable socialist mediocrity.”
“She was a lay preacher’s daughter, a believer in Jesus, and a political conservative who understood the necessity for small government, less tax and more freedom.”
“Margaret Thatcher had an ideological base for her conservative politics, I would say, based in Christianity.”
“HER CHRISTIAN IDEOLOGICAL BASE SET HER APART”
“That’s what set her apart and that’s what made her special.”
“And isn’t her diagnosis of conservatives in Britain 50 years ago, relevant for them and our own political conservatives today, who are trying hard to win without embracing or explaining a properly considered spiritual and ideological framework.”
“That would be a direct and dangerous threat to the socialists and that’s what would really trouble them.”
“As one political conservative has remarked: It’s only when the Liberals are led by Conservatives that they win by landslides.”
