Lowy Institute Poll 2025 Report

Societal issues

Democracy

Democracy as the best form of government

Three-quarters of Australians (74%) see democracy as preferable to any other kind of government, equalling a record high in 2022. The number who say ‘in some circumstances, a non-democratic government can be preferable’ fell three points to 15%. One in ten Australians (10%) continue to say ‘it doesn’t matter what kind of government we have’.

There has been a longstanding age gap in response to this question. Younger Australians (67% of those aged 18–44) are less likely than older Australians (80% of those aged over 45) to say democracy is preferable to any other kind of government — a 13-point gap. The persistence of an age gap since 2012 indicates preference for democracy is associated with a stage of life rather than a particular generation.

Ideal government

When asked to name one country or territory that comes closest to their ideal form of government, people most frequently mention Australia (24%). The next most named country is New Zealand (9%), followed by the United States (7%). Many Australians appear to idealise the governance systems of Nordic countries, with Sweden (5%), Norway (4%), Denmark and Finland (both 3%) all appearing in the top ten. Singapore (4%) and Japan (3%) were the only two Asian countries in the top ten.

Democracy appears to be a common feature among these countries, with eight of the top ten most frequently named countries also rated as ‘full democracies’ in The Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2024 Democracy Index, while the United States and Singapore were rated as ‘flawed democracies’.

Respondents who selected ‘in some circumstances, a non-democratic government can be preferable’ in the previous question, most frequently name Singapore (12%) as closest to their ideal.

Social media and democracy

In a period that saw tech billionaire and X owner Elon Musk assume unprecedented powers in the Trump administration, and a ban on social media for children under 16 take effect in Australia, debates about the reach and impact of social media on society are only growing.

Seven in ten Australians (70%) think social media has a more negative than positive impact on democracy. One-fifth (21%) say it has a more positive impact, while only 8% say social media has no impact at all on democracy.

Immigration

After a freeze on new arrivals during the Covid pandemic, Australia’s net overseas migration rapidly expanded to a peak of 536,000 in 2022–23 due to pent-up demand from students, backpackers, and temporary workers, as well as lower than usual departures.¹ More recently, official figures show net migration fell by 100,000 last year, which puts it on a trajectory back to pre-pandemic levels.² However, in the context of cost-of-living and housing pressures, immigration was a contested political issue in the leadup to Australia’s 2025 federal election.

More than half the population (53%) say the total number of migrants coming to Australia each year is ‘too high’, a five-point increase since last year and on par with the previous high in 2018 (54%). Less than half (45%) think immigration levels are either ‘about right’ (38%) or ‘too low’ (7%).

International students

The largest group of migrant arrivals to Australia is temporary students, with about 315,000 new overseas students commencing study in the higher education and vocational sectors last year. In the 2025 federal election campaign, both parties pledged to cap or reduce the annual student intake.³

This year, more than half of Australians (56%) say the number of international students enrolled at Australian universities is either ‘about right’ (49%) or ‘too low’ (7%). However, 42% say the student intake is ‘too high’.