Vote 4 Her: The ANU Student Campaign Against Gender-Based Violence

By Jasmine Cook

Content Warning: This story contains mention of death, domestic violence and violence against women.

On Wednesday, ‘Vote 4 Her’, a nonpartisan campaign led by ANU students held its first rally in Kambri to protest violence against women. The protest, which was attended by several political candidates, aimed to encourage voters to consider how their vote this Saturday will contribute to action in ending gender-based violence. 

According to the Red Heart Campaign, 103 women were killed in Australia in 2024, approximately one every four days. Already in 2025, 24 women have lost their lives. According to UN Women Australia, femicide, “the intentional killing with a gender-related motivation is rising around the world and should not be mistaken as isolated incidents of violence against individual women, but rather a culmination of repeated and escalating episodes of gender based violence,” perpetuated by structural, legal and social barriers. 

In her speech during Wednesday’s protest, MC Mollie Pontin-Beer acknowledged the sentiment behind the rally, “We are hurt, we are scared, we are sad, and we are ashamed. We have been let down by those who have been elected to lead this country, who perpetuate gendered violence by failing to condemn it. We are here in the leadup to an election, where change is needed most.”

ANU Student Mivy Caddey spoke to Observer about how the murder of her friend,  19-year-old Audrey Griffen – who lost her life last month to gender-based violence on the Central Coast – moved her to co-found the ‘Vote 4 Her’ campaign. 

“I just want people to be really aware that this happened to her (Audrey) literally for no other reason than she was a woman. Every single person that I know who knew her, said how she was so motivated, so driven –

If something like that can happen to her, I just think it’s so important for people when they’re voting to realise that this could happen to anyone in your life. So being aware of that when you’re voting – voting to protect yourself, voting to protect the women around you, and those who can’t vote for themselves anymore.”

The ‘Vote 4 Her’ campaign encouraged voters to research where the major parties stand on addressing violence against women. The campaign acknowledged that many factors are at play – including the need for explicit law reform to protect survivors of domestic violence and prevent escalation. 

The campaign also highlighted the importance of broader policy measures to address gender-based inequality – such as increased housing, homelessness support, income adequacy, health and reproductive rights – as essential to tackling the structural barriers that leave women vulnerable. 

Additionally, Caddy said “[Consider] the way the people you’re voting for respect women in general, if it’s a guy, look at the way he speaks to women in parliament –does he speak over them? Does he actually listen to what they’ve got to say?” 

Resources such as Vote Compass 2025 and Build a Ballot can be used to identify where political parties and specific candidates stand on these issues. 

In a post on the ‘Vote 4 Her” Instagram account, the organisers urge voters to wear a white ribbon to the polling booth this Saturday and to “vote for the women who can’t, because they’ve been killed.” 

Graphics by Shé Chani

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