For 15 years, Australians have prayed for America. Now, under President Donald Trump’s leadership, we’re seeing real change on our own shores.

Australians have been faithfully praying and fasting for the United States for almost 15 years. With the dawn of Donald Trump’s second presidency, we are witnessing many of our prayers being answered.

Below, we will share with you some of the amazing ways that America’s godly influence is impacting the political landscape in Australia. But first, a little background on the prayer that made it possible — and the role that prayer played in the founding of both our nations.

Since 2013, the Canberra Declaration — a Christian values institute with strong parallels to Family Research Council — has issued an annual call for Aussies to pray and fast for the U.S. Why? We recognize America’s pivotal role in upholding faith and freedom worldwide. If America falls, the rest of the world falls with it — Australia included.

As the director and co-founder of the Canberra Declaration, I (Warwick) can personally attest to our strong relationship with FRC. It was in 2005 that I first visited FRC in Washington, D.C. Since 2015, I have worked closely with key FRC staff, on many prayer initiatives for both of our great countries.

The Canberra Declaration has consistently made America a central focus in our prayer campaigns for revival, reformation, and the restoration of sexual integrity worldwide. Last year, we also supported the “A Million Women” event in Washington, D.C., with Australia likely having the largest foreign presence at the prayer gathering that followed on the National Mall.

And by way of a personal anecdote, I (Kurt) am married to a beautiful American girl from the Midwest and now have my green card. I have proverbial skin in the game.

Inspired by FRC’s The Washington Stand, the Canberra Declaration has also launched a news platform called The Daily Declaration which has quickly grown to become Australia’s largest Christian news site, and a hub for political, cultural, and prayer-related news. Indeed, we often feature stories from The Washington Stand on our site.

Far from being a boast, this snapshot of Australia’s prayer partnership with the United States is proof we did not orchestrate the changes we are now seeing Down Under. God did it — and He deserves the glory.

Throughout the ages, God has been powerfully at work in both the United States and Australia, binding our nations together and forging them through the prayers of his people.

Both of our nations share historic roots from British colonization that have shaped our respective cultures in deeply Christian ways. Australia’s system of government is often dubbed “Washminster” — a blend of U.S. federalism and the U.K.’s parliamentary monarchy. Beyond this, Australia is the only nation to have fought alongside the U.S. in every major war for the last 110 years. We also collaborate closely on intelligence and security through the Five Eyes alliance.

Most importantly, both the United States and Australia are nations that were founded in prayer.

The Pilgrims set sail for the New World aboard the Mayflower in search of religious freedom. Upon their arrival in 1620, they earnestly sought God’s guidance and, in their pursuit of a new life, established a covenant with Him.

While Australia began as a convict settlement, the great abolitionist William Wilberforce longed for Australia to become an outpost to evangelize the South Seas. He persuaded the British prime minister to send chaplains to the new colony, the first of whom was Richard Johnson, who held Australia’s first church service in Sydney, built the colony’s first church and school, and went house-to-house praying for and ministering to the convicts.

In time, both nations flourished with prosperous societies grounded in prayer and the gospel. Despite the headwinds of secularism, that legacy endures today, as prayer continues to shape our nations.

So, returning to our initial theme, how is America’s godly political influence spreading to Australia during the second Trump administration?

By way of a disclaimer, like American believers, we do not elevate President Trump as a model of righteousness, and we continue to pray for his character and leadership. Nevertheless, we acknowledge his courage and strong stand for Christian values, and are deeply grateful for the following 10 ways the political reforms of his administration are influencing our country.

1. Our Smaller Pro-Family Parties Are Being Emboldened

America enjoys two-party dominance due to its first-past-the-post voting system. By contrast, Australia’s preferential voting system allows minor parties to thrive and even shape major party policy or help form government. As such, the policies of our minor parties really matter.

And it is here that President Trump’s influence is being felt most in Australia.

Family First, Australian Christians, One Nation, Libertarians, People First and the United Australia Party have all explicitly praised Trump’s policies — whether on family, freedom, peace, or national sovereignty. Some have even introduced legislation that would embed a free speech clause into Australia’s Constitution modeled on the U.S. Bill Of Rights.

Moreover, in February, billionaire Clive Palmer launched a new party called “Trumpet of Patriots” in an explicit nod to Donald Trump. The party aims to Make Australia Great Again by reducing immigration, cutting government spending, dismantling DEI, recognizing only two sexes, banning men from women’s sports, and draining the swamp (or the billabong, as we call it Down Under).

2. Our Universities Are Being Held Accountable

Australia’s largest universities have just been put on notice by the Trump administration. For years, they’ve benefitted from U.S. taxpayer-funded grants through joint research projects with American institutions. However, during this time, many have devolved into Marxist indoctrination camps — a trend now seen across the Western world.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration sent Australia’s big universities a questionnaire, seeking clarity on whether U.S. funding is supporting institutions that peddle abortion, climate alarmism, gender extremism, Chinese influence, religious repression, and DEI ideology, among other radical causes. Seven universities are already facing significant funding cuts due to their positions on these issues.

3. Our Children Are Being Defended

Globally, so-called “gender-affirming care” has been on the retreat for at least the last year, but President Trump’s bold stand against the castration of kids has reverberated powerfully in Australia.

In late January, 100 prominent Australians —including a former prime minister and deputy prime minister — urged our current Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to launch an immediate inquiry into child gender “transitions.” Shortly afterward, the Queensland government announced that it will pause the sterilization and surgical mutilation of children. More recently, One Nation, one of the larger minor-right parties, has also called for an inquiry into the practice.

These developments were hardly imaginable a year ago, but all have happened since Trump’s inauguration, as his courage on this issue has emboldened our leaders to speak out in defense of children.

4. Our Leaders Are Calling for DOGE Down Under

The Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) officially has a counterpart in Australia — or it will, if the Liberal-National Coalition wins next month’s election.

Australia’s Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has appointed Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price as Shadow Minister for Government Efficiency and tasked her with leading efforts to cut government waste and improve efficiency in Australia’s federal government.

The creation of DOGE Down Under has been backed by mining magnate and influential billionaire Gina Rinehart, who as Australia’s richest person might be viewed as our country’s answer to Elon Musk.

5. Our Pro-Life Movement Has Been Invigorated

While Australia’s abortion laws are different to America’s, there is no doubt that the overturning of Roe v. Wade — among many other historic pro-life achievements of President Donald Trump — breathed new life into Australia’s pro-life movement.

In recent years, rallies with thousands of participants have been held in cities like Sydney and Adelaide, federal parliamentarians have become much more outspoken on the issue of life, and new pro-life organizations have sprung up and spread nationally, Love Australia notable among them.

While public support for abortion is yet to shift significantly — mostly due to media deception on the issue — pro-life advocacy is growing, younger Australians are getting involved, and increasing numbers of Australians are thinking deeply about the sanctity of the unborn.

6. Our Corporate Giants Are Backpedaling on Wokeness

Australia’s flagship airline, Qantas, is arguably the country’s most recognizable corporate brand. That’s why it was significant when the company’s new chairman admitted that Australian corporations, including Qantas, were in the wrong when they used their brands to push woke political and social agendas.

“People from all walks of life saw corporate Australia … as lecturing and telling people what to do from a position of assumed moral superiority,” Qantas Chairman John Mullen said in a speech just weeks into Trump’s second term.

This about-face from Qantas is all the more significant given the airline’s promotion of everything from same-sex marriage to DEI, climate change, and race politics. It even led to the persecution of Christian rugby player Israel Folau, who had his contracts torn up for conveying the Bible’s teachings on homosexuality via social media.

Like their U.S. counterparts who retreated from wokeness after Trump’s return, it seems that corporate Australia is learning that staying out of politics is simply good business.

7. Our Women’s Sports Are on the Way to Being Saved

According to polling data, the vast majority of Australians are opposed to men competing in women’s sports. But that hasn’t stopped the culture-wreckers from forcing women and girls to share their sporting codes with gender-confused men.

But following Trump’s bold leadership on this issue, Australia’s Opposition Leader Peter Dutton recently spoke out against men in women’s sports.

Around the same time, Australia’s leading conservative news broadcaster Sky News Australia released a documentary titled “Fair Game: The Fight for Women’s Sport” that featured comments from President Trump.

Australia may be behind on this issue, but it now seems only a matter of time before women’s sports are saved.

8. Our Politicians Are Learning from Trump’s Boldness

Love it or loathe it, President Donald Trump’s approach towards his critics has carved a new political path — one that prioritizes action and change over conciliation and pleasantries. There’s no doubt that a new generation of Australian politicians has emerged in this mold, with a boldness for the truth, an impatience for the establishment, a populist appeal, and zero fear of the media juggernaut.

In the Australian Senate are at least six of them: Pauline Hanson, Malcolm Roberts, Matt Canavan, Alex Antic, Gerard Rennick, and Ralph Babet. In the House of Representatives, Russell Broadbent and Bob Katter carry the torch following George Christensen’s retirement and Craig Kelly’s defeat at the last election.

There are many more in state parliaments taking a bold stand for sanity. Notable among them is Moira Deeming from Victoria, a Christian wife and mother who was kicked out of her party after being branded a “neo-Nazi” for attending a pro-women rally, was later reinstated, and then successfully sued her party leader for defamation.

Boldness, it appears, is contagious.

9. Our Commentators Are Urging We Copy the ‘Trump Blueprint’

Rowan Dean, probably the most prominent conservative commentator in Australia, recently argued that Australia needs to adopt President Donald Trump’s blueprint in order to Make Australia Great Again.

Among the Trump policies he urged our nation to emulate were cutting red and green tape, incentivizing small businesses, using tariffs to build an independent economy, abandoning Net Zero and the Paris Agreement, rejecting welfare and socialism, and rediscovering energy independence and prosperity by tapping into our continent’s vast mineral deposits.

Dean’s argument is clear: if Australia wants to reclaim its strength, it must put the needs of its own people before the wish lists of globalists — just as Trump is doing for America.

10. Our People Are Starting to Stand Up for Free Speech

Australians have faced a wave of pro-censorship legislation in recent years — none more alarming than the federal government’s proposed Misinformation Bill.

Introduced in September 2024, the bill sparked nationwide opposition, with thousands of public submissions and strong criticism from civil liberty groups. The outcry only grew, and by late November — just after President Trump’s re-election — the government was forced to withdraw it. There’s no doubt that Trump’s vocal opposition to Biden-era censorship in the U.S. intelligence community fueled Australia’s public resistance to government-controlled speech.

As I (Warwick) have written elsewhere, President Donald Trump might best be likened to the biblical figure Jehu, an abrasive but transformative leader who disrupted the political establishment for God-ordained ends.

That being true, we will continue to pray for President Trump, his administration, and America’s spiritual revival, knowing the destiny of our nations is entwined and the blessing is bound to come back our way.

God bless the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Australia!

Warwick Marsh is a social reformer, musician, TV producer, writer, and public speaker. Warwick is a leader in the men’s and family movement, and he is well known in Australia for his advocacy for children, marriage, manhood, family, fatherhood, and faith.

Kurt Mahlburg is the senior editor and a regular columnist at The Daily Declaration. He has previously studied architecture, worked as a primary school teacher, and served as a missionary and a young adults pastor.

Together, Warwick and Kurt have co-authored several books, including “Great Southland Revival,” “Power of Prayer,” and “Jesus: The Centre of It All.”