Community Independents Project
Our Story
In 2013 Cathy McGowan was elected as a Community Independent to the federal seat of Indi. She handed the baton to Helen Haines in 2019 when Zali Steggall was also elected as the Independent Member for Warringah. What Cathy and Helen achieved in a regional seat over successive elections, and Zali Steggall in a city seat, inspired a nationwide movement.
Key members of the Indi and Warringah teams had been sharing their experience and knowledge on how to get Community Independents elected, coming together to hold the inaugural Community-minded Independents Convention “Getting Elected” in February 2021. Beyond all expectations, 300 people across more than 72 federal electorates took part.
On 21 May 2022 seven new Community Independents were elected, joining Zali Steggall OAM and Helen Haines, resulting in the biggest cross bench Australia has ever seen. A win for community and a better way of doing politics.
The cross bench of the 47th Parliament included (L to R) Helen Haines (Indi), Kate Chaney (Curtin), Zoe Daniel (Goldstein), Zali Steggall (Warringah), Kylea Tink (North Sydney, unfortunately abolished in the 2024 AEC Redistribution), Dr Sophie Scamps (Mackellar), Allegra Spender (Wentworth) and Dr Monique Ryan (Kooyong). David Pocock was elected as an Independent to the Senate.
In August 2022 CIP held the “Empowered Communities: Next Steps” Convention, celebrating the historic election focused on the next steps for communities. The June 2023 Convention theme was “Get Political: Communities taking political action” - connecting, collaborating, activating for a better Australia. The theme of the 2024 Convention was People Powered Politics. The 2025 Convention centred on building the Community Independents movement - “Communities in Action: Strengthening Democracy Together”. The common thread of all the Conventions is putting community at the heart of Australian politics.
At the Convention participants asked for the knowledge sharing and network building to continue. In response, Cathy McGowan, Alana Johnson and Jill Briggs from Indi and Tina Jackson from Warringah established the Community Independents Project.
The Project began with Stage 1, when there were just a handful of Community Electorate Groups. It focused on igniting possibility, seeding the idea of community-minded representatives and supporting the early growth of the Movement.
Stage 2 followed with a focus on networking people to share knowledge and experience, building a culture of generosity and paying it forward across communities. By 2022 there were around 20 Community Electorate Groups and that year saw an election like no other, and a seismic shift in Australian politics.
Nicolette Boele was elected as the Member for Bradfield, further strengthening the crossbench. Zoe Daniel is no longer the Member for Goldstein, by a wafer thin margin. While the loss of an incredible MP, it’s a demonstration of the gain communities see when they have strong Community Independents.
Many of the 2025 Federal candidates made their seats marginal, including Peter George in Franklin, who went on to be resoundingly elected as a Community Independent in the Tasmanian Parliament. For more detail about the 2025 candidates and results see HERE.
Tens of thousands of people have been inspired to actively participate in our democracy, returning the focus of politics to community, and there is now no such thing as a safe seat.
Whether or not a community ran a candidate or won a seat - our democracy is stronger today because of this grassroots movement.
Changes to the political landscape
Over the past five years, both the Movement and the political landscape have changed dramatically. The number of federal and state Community Electorate Groups across Australia has grown, and alongside them a growing network of organisations, funding bodies, campaign services and initiatives supporting different aspects of the Movement.
The Movement has become a diverse ecosystem, with leadership, knowledge and innovation emerging from many places and an ever-growing number of electorates identifying and campaigning for Community Independent candidates.
While the election of Community Independent MPs does exemplify putting people at the centre of politics, the Movement is not only about mobilising campaigns. It is about communities developing their own ways to continually reach into their electorates and invite people to be more active in the political process beyond election campaigns.
This is a timely juncture for CIP to consider how it can best contribute to progressing the Movement in its broadest sense. What differentiates CIP from the funding and professional services that have emerged in the Movement is that it is not an organisation, rather it is a project specifically designed to anchor the foundational ethos and values of the Movement and facilitate its growth.
We have decided to conclude Stage 2 and pause the Project. Over the ensuing months, CIP will be taking a proactive break to reflect on what the Movement now needs and to consider Stage 3.
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The 2025 Federal Election showed the Community Independents Movement to be the fastest growing political movement in the country. In total, 37 Community Independent candidates stood (representing 1 in 4 electorates), almost double the number who ran in 2022. Notably, the growth in voting for Community Independents was second only to that of the Labor Party. The number of electorates with community groups (like 'Voices of') more than doubled since 2022.