ParliamentPapers

Senate

David Pocock

David Pocock is an Independent senator for the Australian Capital Territory. First elected 21 May 2022.

2022 Won ACT Senate, entered parliament
2022 May 2026
  1. 2022 Won ACT Senate, entered parliament
  • Independent

What do they focus on?

Not enough tracked speeches or amendments to say yet.

  • Budget, tax & economy 46
  • Welfare & housing 45
  • Climate, energy & environment 33
  • Education & skills 29
  • Government & democracy 28

Bars show tracked speeches and amendments by policy area.

How do they vote?

With no party line, this shows how often their votes matched each party's majority.

  • Greens 75%
  • Labor 55%
  • One Nation 37%
  • Coalition 32%

How do they compare?

  • Years in parliament i Total time served across every stint in either chamber, up to the end of the tracked record. 4.1 yrs 0.2 avg 8.5 yrs 33.3
  • Votes against their party i Independents have no party line, so crossing it can't be counted for them.

    No party line to cross — see how they vote.

  • Bills introduced i Bills they introduced to Parliament, counted across the tracked record. 7 avg 2.8 46
  • Amendments sponsored i Amendments to bills they put forward during debate, counted across the tracked record. 226 avg 7.9 226
Where their votes sit, left to right i Built from votes alone: party members sit at their party's mark and move only by votes cast against their own party toward a neighbouring one. Independents are placed by their side on the votes where the parties disagreed.
David Greens Labor Coalition One Nation
Economic 410 votes
Social 195 votes
Climate & environment 94 votes

His socially progressive but pragmatic crossbench politics are more centrist than a voting record that places him close to the Greens. Topic strips exclude accountability and process votes; read small counts loosely.

What have they done lately?

On 2 July 2026, Pocock supported the aged-care human-override bill, saying assessors should be able to override algorithmic decisions with independent oversight. He also supported the Commonwealth land affordable-housing bill, which would require affordable housing in some developments on surplus Commonwealth land.

On 1 July, he supported the higher-education fee reform bill despite disagreements with some provisions. On 25 June, he urged the Senate to pass his face, voice and likeness rights bill, arguing that enforceable protections are needed against harmful AI deepfakes.

When do they vote against their party?

Not applicable. As an independent, David has no party line. The alignment figures show how often their votes matched each party’s majority.

What do they say in debate?

100 tracked speeches across 88 bills.

  • 75 backing a bill
  • 14 with reservations
  • 10 against
  • 1 no clear position

About these numbers

Based on 766 tracked bills from the 47th and 48th Parliaments, current to 6 July 2026. This is a sample of parliamentary activity, not the complete record.

Career markers come from dated public records. Voting figures use division lists only. For party members, the left-to-right marker begins at the party position. It moves only when the member votes against that party and on the same side as a neighbouring party; other cross-party combinations do not affect it. Independents and minor-party members are placed by their votes in divisions where the Greens and the Coalition took opposite sides. If this position differs from a member’s broader public politics, a note appears below the strip.