zlacker

>>xd+(OP)
Winston Churchill (1951–55)

Anthony Eden (1955–57)

Harold Macmillan (1957–63)

Alec Douglas-Home (1963–64)

Harold Wilson (1964–70)

Edward Heath (1970–74)

Harold Wilson (1974–76)

James Callaghan (1976–79)

Margaret Thatcher (1979–90)

John Major (1990–97)

Tony Blair (1997–07)

Gordon Brown (2007–10)

David Cameron (2010–16)

Theresa May (2016–19)

Boris Johnson (2019–22)

Liz Truss (2022 (two days ago) - current)

Quite the reign! Can't help but feel a bit sad really.

>>simons+94
Indeed she reigned for about 30% of U.S. history.

(credit for observation goes to Matt Glassman)

>>ddlath+W6
And she was queen of Australia for over 57% of its history.

>>logicc+pA
Maybe we can finally become a Republic.

>>thunde+Wa1
Ugh, and suffer Tony Abbott as President?

Serious question: name someone who might realistically be President who would not make you sad.

>>jen729+4h1
I would image most Australians would prefer Albo as our head of state rather than King Charles.

>>rajama+rj1
You're kidding right.

>>drekip+Fk1
I'm actually wondering why anyone wouldn't prefer an elected head of state vs one given power through succession.

>>rajama+SV1
When one doesn’t need to be worried about being elected, one can make decisions based on principle, and the longer-term view, rather than pandering to popular opinion.

We always complain that politicians work on a two-year cycle. If your position is permanent (pending death), you escape this cycle.

See also: the House of Lords.

It’s weird to think about, and I’m a working-class Labour voter from Sunderland whose grandad was a welder on the ships, but there’s something to be said for it.

>>jen729+Of2
There's also the argument that if your job as ruler is known from a young age you can be groomed into the role in a way a career politician never will be. A system for choosing a head of state that requires an extensive training period and that meant they couldn't simply be turfed out on the whims of a gaggle of swinging voters has something to be said for it. But what sort of long term decisions would you have them make?

>>wizofa+FP3
Probably infrastructure, as that takes a long time to complete, and can be made a little more effective rather than "if I can find a way to tunnel from the country to the beach, I'll get more votes" (/s)