Teal independents Zali Steggall and Allegra Spender launch new political party
Teal independents Zali Steggall and Allegra Spend will launch a new political party called Community Strong Australia in a much-anticipated move to further destabilize the two-party system and attempt to capture disgruntled One Nation voters.
Community Strong will seek to exploit political turmoil in Australia to establish a new stronghold in the Senate, as well as circumvent new donations laws that disadvantage independents.
But the leaderless party, which does not currently receive funding from Climate 200, is a high-risk strategy as all other teal MPs refuse to take part.
“This is not a centre-right replacement party, it is a centrist party,” Steggall told this imprint. “This is not a life raft for the Liberal Party. They have done their own damage to their own movement.”
Spending said he consulted his community and donor base before joining the party.
“Many people feel politically homeless at the moment and are frustrated with the ability of the major parties to listen and present,” he said.
“People came up to me on the street and said, ‘We hope you can build something together.’ I got emails from all over the country.”
Documents to register Strong Community Australia as a party were lodged with the Australian Electoral Commission on Wednesday, along with the party’s constitution, which allows parliamentarians to vote as they wish on all issues except supply and confidence in government.
But the party has an obligation to defend its “policy fundamentals” (sensible economic management, climate action, equality and integrity).
He will not be the leader of the party; instead “parliamentary leaders will lead collectively”.
If the application is accepted by the AEC, registration of the batch usually takes approximately three months.
“I firmly believe there is an appetite for a different model,” Steggall said. “I don’t agree that this is a risk. That’s why I only have one colleague with me.”
Pollster Kos Samaras, who has consulted independent groups on the desire for a new party, said: “A large number of people who currently vote for One Nation – not an insignificant number of them – will switch to another alternative if it is a serious alternative.
“They’re sitting on One Nation rather than something else. There’s only one product on the market right now,” Samaras said.
“If there is a second election, it will hit One Nation votes as much as it would hit any established political party, including the Greens.”
How much support Community Strong Australia can get has yet to be tested.
Steggall was hugely successful as the first “orange” candidate, winning the Liberal seat of Warringah on Sydney’s north shore from former prime minister Tony Abbott in the 2019 election.
The spending took Sydney’s blue-ribbon electorate of Wentworth from Liberal Dave Sharma in 2022 and increased his margin in the 2025 election.
But Community Strong does not yet have candidates and has not determined its policies. It will need five MPs to qualify for “minority party” status.
Steggall and Spending hope other independent MPs may join Community Strong after discussing the proposal with their communities.
Bradfield independent Nicolette Boele and Mackellar independent Sophie Scamps are consulting supporters and voters in the electorate about the idea.
The remaining two lower house members – Victoria’s Kooyong MP Monique Ryan and WA’s Curtin MP Kate Chaney – refused to join the party.
Climate 200, the controversial big-money donor to many teal campaigns, is not featured in Community Strong, but Steggall has not ruled out taking future donations from the political financing vehicle headed by Simon Holmes à Court.
“Climate 200 is not part of this. They have been informed of Allegra’s and my decision. There is no agreement on future funding,” Steggall said. “Part of the reason for this is that many people in the media are moving to gain control or influence.”
The measure of the new party’s success will come on election night in 2028, Steggall said.
“It will look like increased presence in parliament,” he said. “This could cost me politically. It could mean that’s it.” [for me]. “But I think this moment in Australian politics is worth the risk.”
As a political party, Community Strong will benefit from new election donation laws that come into force on January 1 next year, which will leave many independent candidates worse off than party candidates.
Individual candidates will no longer be able to spend more than $800,000 on their campaigns, but parties will also be able to tap into national campaign budgets, which are capped at $90 million.
He said the spending, endowment changes were “the seams of a major party”.
“I remember being reassured by a Labor Party member that ‘Don’t worry, incumbents will be fine’. But I believe in competition. If they’re building something that means innovation and competition is harder, I have a problem with that.”
Spender said legislation was a factor in his decision to form Community Strong, “but honestly I would do it anyway because it’s about providing the structure you need for things like the Senate.”
Senator David Pocock insisted he would remain independent.
Community Strong wants candidates elected to the upper house, where its members can have more influence if they maintain the balance of power.
Steggall said he first considered the idea of a party of independents in 2020, when Scott Morrison introduced the Climate Change Bill 2020, a private members bill when he was prime minister.
“I saw the limitations of getting one vote out of 150… the limitation of our current movement is that we have no influence in the upper house,” he said.
Spending notes that in the Farrer by-election, independent candidate Michelle Milthorpe received 42 per cent of the preferred vote of the two candidates and lost to One Nation candidate David Farley.
“The party structure will support communities that want representation, and the Senate gives them that opportunity,” he said.
Steggall and Spend believe the Community Strong structure, an “umbrella” party with no branch members and no requirement to vote along party lines, will fill a gap in Australian politics that has currently led to increased support for One Nation.
Steggall conceded Strong Community was unlikely to attract “One Nation’s traditional core voters” but believes it could rally disengaged voters fed up with Labor and the Coalition.
“One Nation voters have views that I and my community do not accept,” Steggall said.
“But if they are looking for big parties rather than ‘breaking the union’, let’s come together to build a different system. That’s my suggestion. Be part of something different and new.”
Under the proposed party structure, Community Strong will have no ordinary branch members.
Steggall states that the party’s constitution is “socially oriented and [avoids] the pitfalls of the party model, namely the party whip, central control and branch agglomeration”.
“We don’t want to repeat the mistakes of the Liberal Party, which are factional power brokers who control MPs over communities,” he said.
Only parliamentarians and pre-selected candidates will have member status, and voter input will be provided through a community engagement committee.
In the event of a dispute over supply and trust, a majority of votes will be required to decide the matter. However, given that the members only consist of Steggall and Spreader, the issue is moot for now.
Steggall, a former Olympic skier, said her sports background taught her that “standing still and doing the same thing isn’t really an option.”
“You must constantly re-evaluate your approach and whether the playing field has changed. What is your strategy for the next competition?” he said. “I have definitely come to the conclusion that it would be better to go to the next election with a different proposal.”
Spending said the plan is to “start small with humility and grow from there.”
