The 2025 Federal Election is Saturday 3 May. Kidney Health Australia is calling on the next government to End Dialysis by 2050. As someone living with or affected by kidney disease, you can use this toolkit to help Australia reach this aspiration.
Ahead of the election, your local federal parliamentary candidates will be very active in their local community trying to secure your vote. You can participate locally and have your voice heard.
Many candidates may not know very much about chronic kidney disease (CKD) so hearing from you about your experiences will help them better understand what it's like living with CKD and how they can support you. There are many ways to participate in your local area:
We have created a number of support materials such as email templates and social media tiles that you can access and use.
Keep us updated
If you participate in some way such as sending an email or speaking to your local candidates at a public forum, please let us know. We really appreciate people choosing to share this information with us.
2025 Election Platform
Urgent action, including action from the Federal Government, is needed to tackle chronic kidney disease - Australia’s hidden health and economic crisis.
We are proposing five election actions to address this crisis:
Chronic kidney disease is an insidious, underdiagnosed disease that affects an increasing number of Australians. Currently, more than 2 million Australians live with CKD, and by 2030 it’s expected that 42% of Australian’s will be affected. This impact is exacerbated in disadvantaged communities – Central Australia now records the highest rates of treated kidney failure per capita in the world. When your kidneys fail, dialysis or a transplant are the only options to stay alive. As a treatment, dialysis is invasive, expensive, and time consuming. As a result, it has a substantial impact on a patient’s quality of life.
50% of people on dialysis experience depression and a further 82.5% of patients report that dialysis has put them at risk of financial hardship.
Kidney disease progresses silently: up to 90% of kidney function can be lost before any symptoms are experienced, meaning that many Australians progress to late-stage CKD before receiving a diagnosis.
Investment in early diagnosis, equitable access to treatment and supporting ongoing research, will save lives and reduce future healthcare costs.
In the lead up to the election your local candidates will be in your local area trying to secure your vote. This is your chance to tell them why CKD is important to you and what changes you would like to see. Your local candidates may not know much about CKD, so this is your chance to share what it's like to live with the challenges and what they can do for voters with CKD.
Sharing stories or posts about living with CKD on social media can be a great way to get your story seen by candidates. You can tag your local candidate on social media by typing @ followed by their username in your post or comment.
You can also use the following tags to let us know that you’re posting:
#enddialysisby2050
#kidneyhealthmatters
Contact us if you have any comments or questions about this toolkit.
Advocacy team: [email protected]
Media enquiries: [email protected]
Phone: 1800 454 363
You can use this search to find what electorate you live in, a profile map of your federal electorate and the name of the current House of Representatives Member.
Voters’ guide to election communication
Contact information can be found on their party websites. Here are some links to the major party sites
Smaller parties and independents can be found by a quick web search or by visiting the Australian Electoral Commission Candidate page.
