Preferences are more important than ever this election. See where Australian voters sent theirs last time

The share of people voting for a major party dropped from more than 90% of primary votes in the 1950s to 68.8% in the 2022 federal election, which makes preferences more important. Photograph: Dan Peled/Getty Images

Preferences have become more important than ever in Australian elections, as the share of people supporting the major parties has dropped from more than 90% of primary votes in the 1950s to just 68.8% in the most recent federal poll.

The last Australian election saw 16 seats won by candidates who were not leading after the first count – the most ever, tied with 2016. And more than half of those winners were independent candidates – also the most ever.