proACT is an independent movement focused on promoting community-driven politics, inspired by the “Voices for…” model. Their candidate selection process reflects their values of participation, integrity, evidence-based decision-making, and accountability, all of which were developed through extensive community input. These values guide their operations and the qualities they seek in candidates.

Community-Driven Principles
proACT’s principles were shaped by feedback gathered during ACTive conversations with community members and confirmed through a survey of their community in September 2021. These principles emphasize the importance of community engagement, transparency, and collaborative decision-making in both their processes and the candidates they endorse.

Selection Committee
The candidate selection process is overseen by a committee comprised of equal representation from the proACT organizing committee and members of the broader proACT community. The committee’s composition considers age, geography, gender, and cultural background to ensure diversity and inclusivity. Decisions within the committee are made through consensus.

Community Engagement in Candidate Selection
proACT incorporates extensive community input into their candidate selection process, including: • Input into Selection Criteria: Community members contributed to defining the qualities and values candidates should possess.
• Candidate Suggestions: The community was invited to suggest potential candidates to approach.
• Deliberative Events: Town halls, kitchen conversations, and similar forums provided opportunities for the community to engage with candidates and discuss issues important to them. Feedback from these events informed candidate interviews and the selection process. While no formal voting took place, the level of community support for each candidate was considered in the final decision.

Endorsement of David Pocock
In 2022, after listening to the community and assessing candidates, proACT endorsed David Pocock as their community-backed independent candidate for the Senate. For the 2025 election, proACT reaffirmed this endorsement following a September 2024 survey of their community. The survey showed overwhelming support for Senator Pocock’s performance, highlighting his ability to represent the ACT community, act on key issues, and uphold integrity in his decision-making. “David has proven to be an outstanding, authentic leader who engages with the diverse ACT community,” said Clare Doube, co-founder of proACT. “Although not everyone agrees with every decision David has made during his first term, they value his collaborative approach to decision-making, involving those affected, and the integrity he displays at all times.” proACT is energized by David Pocock’s commitment to serving the ACT community and strongly supports his re-election campaign. The group encourages all those who want to see an independent voice in the Senate to support him at www.davidpocock.com.au.        

proACT presents itself as a community-driven movement with a focus on participation, integrity, evidence-based decision-making, and accountability. While these principles are commendable, there is limited information about the group’s candidate selection process available on their website, with only high-level descriptions and vague details provided. Greater transparency and accessibility would enhance public understanding of their approach and build trust in its fairness and inclusivity.

Community Engagement and Feedback
proACT emphasizes its reliance on ACTive conversations and surveys to capture community input on issues and the qualities sought in candidates. However, it is unclear how many people participated in these activities, the demographics of respondents, or how outreach was conducted to ensure a diverse array of voices was included. Without these details, it is difficult to determine whether the input collected was representative of the broader ACT community or if certain voices may have been overlooked, potentially skewing the results.

Selection Committee
The candidate selection committee is described as comprising half its members from the proACT organizing committee and half nominated from the wider proACT community. While this structure aims to balance internal and external representation, key details are missing, such as:
• Who was on the organizing committee?
• How were nominations from the wider community solicited and selected?
• What diversity metrics were considered in forming the committee?
A lack of clarity on these aspects makes it hard to assess the inclusivity and transparency of the committee’s formation.

Candidate Evaluation
While community involvement in defining the qualities and values sought in candidates is a positive feature, the exact selection criteria remain unclear. Suggestions of individuals to approach as potential candidates introduce a subjective element that could bias the process, potentially favoring high-profile or well-connected individuals while excluding others with less visibility. Greater detail on how candidates were assessed and who was involved in this process would help address concerns about fairness.

Community Events and Feedback
proACT’s deliberative events, such as town halls and kitchen conversations, are designed to gather community input on candidates. However, the group does not explain why formal voting was not used, what kind of feedback was collected, or whether this feedback will be shared publicly. Furthermore, it is unclear how many candidates participated, how candidates were excluded, or at what stage and for what reasons exclusions occurred. These gaps in information make it difficult to evaluate the robustness of the process.

2022 and 2025 Endorsements
proACT endorsed David Pocock in 2022, stating this decision was made “after listening to the community and assessing candidates.” However, no specifics are provided on how candidates were assessed or what informed the final decision to endorse Pocock.
For the 2025 election, proACT re-endorsed Pocock based on a 2024 survey, but it is unclear how many people responded to the survey, who it was sent to, or the demographics of respondents. Without this information, it is hard to evaluate the robustness of this justification or whether the process was equitable.

Conclusion
While proACT’s emphasis on community involvement and adherence to guiding principles is commendable, significant gaps in transparency and detail around the selection process raise questions about inclusivity, fairness, and accountability. Addressing these issues in future candidate selection processes would strengthen the credibility of their approach.

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