The first climate change election? The Australian general election of 24 November 2007

Discusses the results of the Australian general election of November 2007 in the light of environmental politics. Since the election resulted in the victory of Kevin Rudd whose first official act in office was to support the Kyoto Protocol, the event raises the question of the role of the climate change issue in deciding the vote. Concludes that although climate control cannot be called the single, decisive issue, its role marks a clear break with the policies of the previous administration. The immediate establishment of a new Department of Climate Change would suggest that it was a crucial, if not a deciding, issue. Further evidence of its centrality is Australia's performance at the 2007 Bali Conference where, in opposition to the previous regime's position, Australia backed the IPCC's science-backed emissions reduction targets. Adds that even some aspects of industry, traditionally hostile to such measures, were in support. Further develops argument by examining such evidence as electoral surveys, the roles of various political parties, including the Greens, & statistical information in the form of tables & figures comparing voting data from the 2007 election to that of 2004. Tables, Figures, References. R. Ruffin