Can an independent become Prime Minister?

Good question!

While possible, it is very unlikely that an independent could become Prime Minister. This is because the Prime Minister is the leader of the party (or the biggest party in a coalition of parties) that has the support of the majority of members in the House of Representatives. An independent does not belong to a political party, so they cannot be the leader of one!

To become Prime Minister, an independent would need the support of a majority of members in the House. This could only happen if no party or coalition of parties could form government on its own. In that situation, a group of members – including independents and possibly members of parties – could agree to work together to form government. If they formed a group with enough support and chose an independent as leader, that independent could become Prime Minister.

However, voters usually elect members of political parties, with a much smaller number of independents getting elected. An independent could only become Prime Minister if a federal election had a very different result to past elections.