1. Federal Parliamentary Democracy of Australia
©2011 Clairmont Press

2. Australia’s Federation
Australia distributes power through different divisions or levels of government.
National Government (Capital: Canberra)
The Provincial or Territorial Governments:
New South Wales
South Australia
Victoria
Western Australia
Queensland
Tasmania
Northern Territory & Australian Capital Territory
Australia National Government
New South Wales
South Australia
Victoria
Western Australia
Queensland
Tasmania
Australian Capital Territory
Northern Territory

3. Australia’s Parliamentary Democracy
Executive Branch
Legislative Branch
Head of Government (Chief Executive)
Prime Minister
Appointed member of the legislative branch (House of Representatives)
Chief of State (Head of State)
Constitutional Monarch
Currently: Her Majesty Queen of Australia Elizabeth II
She is also the Queen of Great Britain, Canada, and Jamaica
Her power is largely symbolic, she is limited in power by the constitution of Australia.
Governor General
Appointed by the constitutional monarch at the request of the prime minister
Upper House:
Senate
76 seats
12 members from each state and 2 from each territory
House of Representatives
150 seats
Representation determined by population totals
Prime Minister is the leading member of the majority party in the House of Representatives.
He or she chooses cabinet members from the House of Representatives

4. Australia Government