Government of Australia
The Legislature makes the laws, and supervises the activities of the other two arms with a view to changing the laws if needed. The Australian Parliament is bicameral, made up of the Queen, a 76-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. Twelve Senators from each state are elected for six-year terms, using proportional representation and the single transferable vote (known in Australia as "preferential voting", with half elected every three years.