Australian Senate, Legislative house in Canberra, Australia.
The Australian Senate is the upper house of the national parliament in Canberra and includes 76 elected members representing the entire country. The chamber displays a horseshoe arrangement of seats, red carpets and dark wood that gives the room a formal character.
This chamber began its work in 1901, when the Australian colonies joined together to form a federation and established a common parliament. Since then it has met within the same institutional framework, first in Melbourne and from 1927 in Canberra.
The name 'Senate' comes from Latin and refers to the tradition of an elder council, although today elected representatives of all ages sit here. Visitors notice the equal distribution of seats among the states, a system that places smaller regions on the same level as larger ones.
Sessions usually take place between February and June as well as from August to November, with public galleries accessible during debates. Visitors can view the chamber outside sitting periods as part of guided tours through the parliament building.
The length of mandate differs according to the origin of the senators: representatives from the states remain in office for six years, while members from the territories must stand for re-election after three years. This rotation ensures that only half of the state representatives face election at the same time.
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