About Us

Voices of Bean is a group of volunteers inspired by similar Community Independents groups around the country.

The Community Independents movement started in 2013 when the people of Indi in Victoria demanded better representation and succeeded in having a community candidate, Cathy McGowan, replace the sitting MP in a ‘safe’ seat. Indi has been held by an Independent ever since.

Taking inspiration from Indi, similar groups have sprung up around the country, with Zali Steggall being elected as the Member for Warringah in 2019, and then six more (‘Teal’) Independent MPs being elected in 2022, from WA, VIC and NSW.

And right here in the ACT, community group proACT endorsed an independent, David Pocock, for the Senate at the 2022 election, and he was elected.

This is a movement that is reviving democracy in Australia and changing the way politics works. It is challenging the two-party system and giving voters more choice and more say in how they are represented.

There have always been independent candidates, but it is the ones backed by a community movement who have a real chance of succeeding. This is why Voices of Bean wants to hear from you and wants your involvement.

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proACT helped Voices of Bean get off the ground and the two organisations continue to collaborate. A similar group, Voices for Canberra, has also started in the federal electorate of Canberra. We also collaborate with another group, Active Democracy Bean. This is a non partisan group of locals who want to increase community engagement in democracy in the federal electorate of Bean, and improve the responsiveness and accountability of our elected representatives.