A short, sharp political education

A short, sharp political education
Sydney Morning Herald (subscription) - Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
...If there was more knowledge of the electoral system, there would be more informed debate. After the recent federal election there was much talk about the way that Family First got elected in Victoria. Family First's Steve Fielding got 56,372 first-preference votes and was the sixth senator elected from Victoria. The Greens polled 263,551 votes and didn't make it. Even the long-forgotten Democratic Labor Party outpolled Family First, scoring 58,042 votes.

So why did Family First's candidate get elected? Because the ALP decided to play silly buggers with preferences...