Australia Federal Election: Cannabis Party Averaging Around 5% of the Vote For Senate Seats

We’ve just wrapped up our biggest federal campaign yet.

We contested over 40 House of Representatives seats and delivered some outstanding results. From Leichhardt in Far North Queensland to Brand in Western Australia, and dozens of electorates in between. (See below for a full list and results)

While it remains extraordinarily difficult for a minor party to win a lower house seat under the current electoral system, by running in so many seats around the country we brought the issue of cannabis legalisation to the attention of more Australians than ever before. At the same time by running in so many seats we have managed to grow our vote where it counts most: in the Senate, where we have the strongest chance of securing a seat on the crossbench—and making real change.

Thanks to our passionate candidates, donors, hard-working committee, and small but mighty army of volunteers, that message reached voters across the country—at pre-poll, on election day, on social media, and through thousands of personal conversations.

Early Senate Results Are Promising

We ran for the Senate in every state plus the Northern Territory.

Whilst these numbers may change as the count progresses, we’re excited to share that we are seeing swings toward the Legalise Cannabis Party in nearly every state and the NT. Here’s where we stand so far (with 2022 results in brackets):

• Northern Territory: 6.9% (2022: 6.2%)

• Victoria: 4.13% (2022: 3%)

• Western Australia: 4.71% (2022: 3.4%)

• Queensland: 4.1% (2022: 5.4%)

• New South Wales: 3.7% (2022: 2.6%)

• Tasmania: 3.59% (2022: 3%)

• South Australia: 2.96% (2022: 2.3%)

Senate counting is a slow and complex process—especially when it comes to the final seats in each state. Reaching the required vote percentage of 14.3% to elect a Senator (known as a quota) via a combination of primary votes and preference flows is no small task and winning a seat at the Federal level is considerably harder than at the state level. But despite the challenge, some media outlets are reporting that we’re in with a shot in one or two states.

“The Poll Bludger’s election analyst, William Bowe, said based on current numbers, the final Victorian spot could easily fall to Labor, One Nation or Legalise Cannabis.

…(in Queensland) …One Nation’s Malcolm Roberts has 0.5 of a quota in Queensland and is the favourite to hold this spot, but is closely trailed by People First’s Gerard Rennick, Legalise Cannabis’ Belinda Jones and Trumpet of Patriots.

Legalise Cannabis and One Nation had decent outings across multiple states, recording some of the best first preference counts among minor parties after the Greens.

Final results will not be known for weeks.”

The Age. May 4, 2025

Within each state there are some interesting numbers which point to the strength of our Senate vote in specific regions. Here is a snapshot from the larger states:

• In NSW on the mid north coast in the seats of Lyne and Cowper we are on 7.01% and 6.86% respectively and in Hunter we are on 5.85%
• In the Far North Queensland seat of Capricornia we are on 5.94% and are trending well across a range of Queensland seats including Flynn on 5.96% and Hinkler, which takes in Bundaberg, on 5.43%
• In Victoria, outer metro seats such as Hawke (5.3%) and Dunkley (5.32%) are showing good results as are some seats in the regions (eg Monash 5.5%, Gippsland 5.29%)
• West Australia is particularly strong including Brand (7.81%), Forrest (7.07%) and one of the largest seats in the country, Durack on 5.83%

Regardless of what happens, whether you ran as a candidate, volunteered at a booth, donated, or simply helped spread the word—your contribution made this campaign possible. We’re deeply grateful for your time, energy, and belief in what we’re fighting for.

As more results come through, we will keep you posted …

House of Representatives – Seat by Seat