The Chaser election specials

The Chaser election specials

Company type	Television series
Industry	Television production, Political satire, Comedy
Founded	2001
Founder	The Chaser
Headquarters	Australia
Products	Political satire comedy television specials related to Australian federal elections

The Chaser election specials consist of Australian political satire comedy shows created by The Chaser, which have been covering Australian federal elections on ABC TV since 2001. The team's television debut was the original series The Election Chaser in 2001. Later installments included The Chaser Decides, broadcast in 2004 and 2007; notably, the 2004 edition earned the Logie Award for "Most Outstanding Comedy Program." In 2010, they produced a five-episode series called Yes We Canberra!, centered on the 2010 Australian federal election. The 2013 election was satirized in The Hamster Decides, followed by The Chaser's Election Desk, which aired during the six weeks leading up to the 2016 Australian federal election.

2001 series (The Election Chaser)

The Election Chaser marked the first television venture for the The Chaser team, who had been known for their satirical publication The Chaser since 1999. The ABC personality Andrew Denton facilitated a deal for the team to create this program, which debuted on 23 October 2001. Focused on the 2001 federal election, it parodied ABC’s election tally room setup. The presenting team comprised Charles Firth, Julian Morrow, Chris Taylor, Craig Reucassel, Chas Licciardello, and Dominic Knight. Although nominated for "Most Outstanding Comedy Program" at the 2002 Logies, it was bested by ABC’s The Micallef Program.

Episode no.	Date broadcast	Mal award
1	23 October 2001	Philip Ruddock
2	30 October 2001	Jackie Kelly
3	6 November 2001	Natasha Stott Despoja Mark Latham
4	13 November 2001	John Howard

2004 series (The Chaser Decides)

After the positive reception of The Election Chaser, the group created CNNNN, a parody of continuous news channels, which won the 2004 Logie for "Most Outstanding Comedy Program". Prior to the 2004 federal election, they introduced The Chaser Decides, airing weekly on Thursdays from 24 September to 14 October 2004.

Broadcast once more from a National Tally Room, this series featured four primary hosts: Morrow, Reucassel, Taylor, and Andrew Hansen, while Licciardello and Firth contributed as reporters and Knight served as writer. The program garnered strong viewership and secured the 2005 Logie for "Most Outstanding Comedy Program".

Episode no.	Date broadcast	Mal award
1	24 September 2004	Malcolm Turnbull
2	30 September 2004	Tony Abbott
3	7 October 2004	Family First Party
4	14 October 2004	Peter Costello

2007 series (The Chaser Decides)

After the conclusion of the second season of The Chaser's War on Everything, the Chaser team produced a two-episode series titled The Chaser Decides, centered on the 2007 Australian federal election. These episodes aired in place of the usual War on Everything slot on 21 and 28 November 2007, following a format consistent with their 2004 election coverage.

Episode No.	Broadcast Date	Mal Award Recipient	Viewership	Nightly Position	Reference
1	21 November 2007	Lisa Milat Tony Abbott	1,421,000	1st
2	28 November 2007	Jackie Kelly	1,378,000	1st

2010 series (Yes We Canberra)

For the 2010 Australian federal election, The Chaser returned with five episodes under the title Yes We Canberra!, broadcasting four installments prior to the election and one following it. This marked their first television project since the final season of War on Everything in 2009. Premiering on 28 July 2010, the show was styled to resemble the news program Lateline, featuring guest appearances from Tony Jones and Leigh Sales. The concluding episode was filmed on the set of , with hosts David Stratton and Margaret Pomeranz joining as special guests.

Episode No.	Broadcast Date	Guest Star	Mal Award Recipient	Viewership	Nightly Ranking	Reference
1	28 July 2010	Julie Bishop	David Barker	1,493,000	3rd
2	4 August 2010	Tanya Plibersek	Steve Fielding	1,297,000	9th
3	11 August 2010	Maxine McKew	Kevin Rudd	1,335,000	5th
4	18 August 2010		No award given	1,250,000	9th
5	25 August 2010		Karl Bitar	1,189,000	9th

A DVD compiling all five episodes along with bonus content and commentary was released by Roadshow Entertainment on 16 September 2010. The extras featured deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes footage.

2013 series (The Hamster Decides)

In March 2012, The Chaser revealed plans for their 2013 election series initially named The Election Hamster. It was subsequently retitled The Hamster Decides, comprising five episodes beginning on 21 August 2013. Following the advancement of the election date from 14 to 7 September, the premiere was rescheduled to air earlier on 14 August, with broadcasts on Wednesdays at 9:15pm using the set from The Hamster Wheel.

Episode No.	Broadcast Date	Featured Guest	Mal Award Recipient	Viewership	Timeshifted Ranking
1	14 August 2013	Bob Katter		962,000	10th
2	21 August 2013	Doug Cameron		842,000	11th
3	28 August 2013	Sarah Hanson-Young		896,000	10th
4	4 September 2013	Anthony Albanese		1,001,000	6th
5	11 September 2013	Jaymes Diaz	Kevin Rudd	902,000	10th

2016 series (The Chaser’s Election Desk)

The 2016 installment, titled The Chaser’s Election Desk, premiered on 8 June 2016, introducing new contributors such as Zoe Norton Lodge, Ben Jenkins, Kirsten Drysdale, Alex Lee, Scott Abbot, Mark Sutton, and Hannah Reilly.

Episode no.	Air date	Featured guest	Mal award recipient	Viewership	Timeshift ranking
1	8 June 2016			783,000	8th
2	13 June 2016	Bill Shorten (vox pop)		776,000	9th
3	20 June 2016		Chris Jermyn	687,000	15th
4	6 July 2016			655,000	14th

2019 series (Democracy Sausage)

In November 2018, the ABC opted not to commission an election special for the 2019 election. Instead, Taylor and Reucassel presented a complimentary podcast entitled Democracy Sausage, accessible via the ABC's website. During the later stages of the campaign, episodes were also made available through ABC iView and ABC Comedy platforms.

2022 series (The Chaser Report: Election Edition)

No television series was produced for the 2022 election. Alternatively, Charles Firth and Dominic Knight created a free daily podcast called The Chaser Report: Election Edition. Occasional appearances were made by other team members including Craig Reucassel, Andrew Hansen, Chris Taylor, and Chas Licciardello, alongside "Chaser Interns" and intermittent prank content shared via The Chaser's social media accounts.

Home release

On 3 December 2010, the DVD titled The Chaser Election Collection was issued, compiling all election specials produced up to that point along with bonus features such as the previously unreleased pilot episode The Election Chaser.

The Mal Award

At the conclusion of each episode, a member of the team presents The Mal Award, named in reference to Mal Meninga’s brief foray into politics in 2001. This accolade highlights the "most significant act of political self-sabotage during an election campaign." Notably, in the episode aired on 28 November 2007, Meninga himself humorously accepted the award but "gave up" midway through his acceptance speech.

"This Person Votes"

A recurring gag featured in every series except for 2010 showcased clips of individuals—often appearing intoxicated—demonstrating political ignorance (for example: "I reckon Mickey Mouse is the best", or "Who's John Howard?"). These clips were followed by an on-screen caption reading "This Person Votes." In episodes following elections, this was altered to "This Person Voted."

Scrolling newsbar

During the 2004 and 2007 seasons, a scrolling news ticker displaying satirical headlines was featured at the bottom of the screen, reminiscent of CNNNN. This element was replaced in the 2010, 2013, and 2016 seasons by fabricated Twitter posts attributed to celebrities and politicians.