Australian Senate

Senate
48th Parliament of Australia
Type
Type	Upper house of the Parliament of Australia
Leadership
President	Sue Lines, Labor since 26 July 2022
Leader of the Government	Penny Wong, Labor since 1 June 2022
Manager of Government Business	Katy Gallagher, Labor since 1 June 2022
Leader of the Opposition	Michaelia Cash, Liberal since 25 January 2025
Manager of Opposition Business	Jonathon Duniam, Liberal since 25 January 2025
Structure
Seats	76
Political groups	Government (29)   Labor (29) Opposition (27) Coalition   Liberal (22)   National (5) Crossbench (20)   Greens (11)   One Nation (4)   Lambie Network (1)   United Australia (1)   Independent (3)
Length of term	6 years (state senators) 3 years (territory senators)
Elections
Voting system	Proportional representation (single transferable vote)
Last election	3 May 2025 (Half Senate election)
Next election	On or before 20 May 2028
Meeting place
Senate Chamber Parliament House Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Website
Senate

This article is part of a series on the
Politics of Australia
Constitution
The Crown Monarch Charles III Governor-General David Hurley
Executive Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (ALP) Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles (ALP) Federal Executive Council Ministry Albanese ministry Cabinet
Legislature Australian Parliament Senate President Sue Lines (ALP) Leader Penny Wong (ALP) House of Representatives Speaker Milton Dick (ALP) Leader Tony Burke (ALP) Opposition Leader Peter Dutton (LP) Shadow Ministry
Judiciary High Court of Australia Chief Justice Susan Kiefel Gageler Keane Gordon Edelman Steward Gleeson Lower courts Law of Australia
Elections Recent elections 2022 2019 2016 2013 2010 2007 Federal electoral system Electoral divisions By-elections Referendums and plebiscites Voter registration Leadership spill Political parties Political funding
States and territories Governors and administrators Premiers and chief ministers Parliaments and assemblies State courts State electoral systems
Local government NSW Vic Qld WA SA Tas NT
Foreign relations Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Foreign Minister Penny Wong Diplomatic missions of / in Australia Nationality law Passports Visa requirements Visa policy Australia and the United Nations G20 APEC New Zealand United Kingdom United States Canada European Union China India
Ideology Anarchism Christian Conservatism Environmentalism Far-right Liberalism Nationalism Republicanism Socialism Hansonism

The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of Australia. The lower house is the House of Representatives. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years. But some senators have three year terms. The Senate has a lot of power from the Australian Constitution.

There are currently 76 people in the Senate.

Australian Senate Media

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  The Australian Senate in 1923

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  The Senate chamber at Old Parliament House, Canberra, where the Parliament met between 1927 and 1988.

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  Senate ballot paper used in Victoria for 2016

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  Senatepanorama

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  A Senate committee room in Parliament House, Canberra

• A short video on Australian Parliamentary Committees