Famous Australian Political Leaders

Scott Morrison is an Australian politician, currently serving as the prime minister of Australia. After assuming office, Morrison led the Coalition to victory in 2019, which was considered a significant upset as the Labor Party was ahead of the Coalition in most opinion polls. As Australia's first Pentecostal PM, Morrison also serves as an inspiration to the Pentecostal community.

Tony Abbott is a former politician who served as Australia's 28th prime minister from 2013 to 2015. Over the years, Abbott has had a major impact on society, thanks to his community service. He is an active volunteer for agencies and institutions like the New South Wales Rural Fire Service and Queenscliff's Surf Life Saving Club.

Son of King George V and Queen Mary, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, was educated at Eton, becoming the first son of a monarch in Britain to attend school. He made headlines with his affair with Beryl Markham. Owing to his multiple strokes, he was wheelchair-bound in his final years.

Malcolm Turnbull is a retired Australian politician. From 2015 to 2018, Turnbull served as the 29th prime minister of Australia. He also served as the leader of the Liberal Party on two occasions. For his service to the Parliament of Australia, Turnbull was awarded Companion of the Order of Australia during the 2021 Australia Day Honours. 

John Howard is an Australian former politician who served serving as the prime minister of Australia from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He is the second-longest-serving Australian prime minister, behind Sir Robert Menzies. As the prime minister, John Howard enforced new gun laws after the Port Arthur massacre of 1996. His tenure as PM has inspired several books.

Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd has been an Australian Labor Party leader and his country’s foreign affairs minister, too. After graduating in Chinese studies, he directly stepped into a diplomatic career. He has also worked for KPMG Australia as a Senior China Consultant and has penned a memoir.

Pauline Hanson is an Australian politician who has been serving as a senator for Queensland since 2016. Hanson is credited with founding a right-wing political party called One Nation, for which she also serves as the leader. Also an author, Pauline Hanson has published many books, including her autobiography, Untamed and Unashamed.

Harold Holt was an Australian politician and the 17th prime minister of Australia. On 17 December 1967, Holt disappeared while swimming in rough conditions at Cheviot Beach. Following his disappearance, which gave rise to several conspiracy theories, Harold Holt was presumed dead. The Harold Holt Memorial Swimming Centre in Melbourne is named in his honor.

Gough Whitlam was an Australian politician who served as the prime minister of Australia from 1972 to 1975. During the 1972 election, Whitlam played a major role in bringing the Australian Labor Party to power. During the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, he was dismissed by Governor-General John Kerr, becoming the only prime minister to be dismissed in this manner.

Paul Keating is an Australian politician who served as the 24th Prime Minister of Australia and was in the office from 1991 to 1996. He previously served as the deputy prime minister of Australia and the treasurer of Australia. His tenure as the prime minister witnessed the enactment of the landmark Native Title Act to enshrine Indigenous land rights.

Daniel Andrews is an Australian politician who is currently serving as the premier of Victoria. He has been the leader of the Labor Party in Victoria since 2010. Prior to this, he worked as a research and political officer. He is a popular politician, and he received praise for his leadership during the 2019–20 Victorian bushfires and the Covod-19 pandemic. 

Robert Menzies was an Australian politician who served as the prime minister of Australia on two non-consecutive terms. He served over 18 years in total, becoming the longest-serving prime minister in Australian history. His government is known for its emphasis on higher education, national security policies, and immigration schemes. After retirement, he became the chancellor of the University of Melbourne. 

Peter Garrett is an Australian musician, activist, environmentalist, and former politician. Renowned for his eccentric dance style and signature bald head, Garrett is best known for his association with the popular rock band Midnight Oil where he performs as the lead singer. A football fan, Peter Garrett supports the Essendon Bombers of the AFL.

Julie Bishop is an Australian former politician who once served as the Minister for Foreign Affairs. For several years, she was the deputy leader of the Liberal Party. She studied law at the University of Adelaide and worked as a commercial lawyer before venturing into politics. In 2020, she became the first woman chancellor of the Australian National University.  

Born to Irish immigrants, John Curtin had witnessed working-class uprisings in his younger days, which led him to join Australia’s Labour Movement. He was the only Australian prime minister with a Western Australian seat. The strenuous job of leading his country during World War II affected his health.

Peter Cosgrove is an Australian retired Army officer. From 2014 to 2019, he served as the governor-general of Australia. Cosgrove achieved popularity when he commanded the International Force for East Timor, a multinational peacemaking task force, which ensured peace and safety during East Timor's transition to independence in 1999.  Peter Cosgrove also played an important role in the Vietnam War.

Former premier of New South Wales, the biggest state economy of Australia, Gladys Berejiklian was born to Armenian immigrants in Sydney. She made headlines when she resigned from her premiership in October 2021, amid investigations on corruption and the COVID-19 pandemic. She is a regular at the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Penny Wong is an Australian politician. She has been a senator for South Australia since 2002. Currently, she is leader of the opposition in the senate. She is a qualified lawyer and has previously worked as a political advisor. She is a member of the LGBTQAI+ community and played a key role in the legalization of same-sex marriage in Australia. 

Henry Parkes was a politician who served as the premier of the Colony of New South Wales. Serving at different time periods throughout the 1870s and 1880s, Parkes was the longest non-consecutive premier in the Colony of New South Wales history. Considered the Father of Federation, Parkes was described as the most commanding figure in Australian politics by The Times.

William McMahon was an Australian politician whose 21-year ministerial service is the longest continuous service in the history of Australian politics. From 1971 to 1972, William McMahon served as the prime minister of Australia. He also played an important role in the Second World War; serving in the Australian Army and reaching the rank of major.

Edith Cowan was an Australian social reformer best remembered for serving as a member of parliament; she was the first Australian woman to do so. She is also remembered for working for the welfare and rights of children and women. In recognition of her contribution, Cowan has been depicted on Australia's fifty-dollar note since 1995.