Independents putting their hands up to run in the ACT election later this year is a very welcome development for the capital.
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Peter Strong, a businessman, and Ann Bray, a former diplomat and medical scientist, this week announced they would contest the October poll.
Other independent candidates have done the same at many territory elections, but have encountered very difficult terrain.
In the Hare-Clark system an independent must come to the campaign with an established name. The ACT's strict - and sensible - campaign spending cap makes it hard to buy instant name recognition.
The difference in 2024 will be a greater sense of what independents can achieve.
The ACT elected David Pocock as its independent senator in 2022, giving voters here a taste of what a representative who is not beholden to a party can achieve.
There is no doubt this result has given plenty of voters, and potential candidates, pause for thought in the territory.
More candidates are expected to announce their plans as the year progresses towards that all-important Saturday in October.
Working together, while tarnishing the purity of true independence, represents a smart strategy to overcome the usual barriers to political hopefuls working alone.
The long reign of Labor, in coalition with the Greens, is ultimately a situation to be lamented. Governments need to be held accountable by strong political opponents.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr faces a worthy opponent in Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee, but the same cannot always be said of the rest of the members on the opposition benches.
The Canberra Liberals have found themselves moribund, stuck in the political doldrums. Voters are within their rights to be wary about the party's governing credentials, bereft as it now is of any ACT government experience.
Forming a majority government in the Legislative Assembly is a near-impossible task for the opposition; independents would offer a path to power, and an internal check.
Strong independents could do much to sharpen the thinking of Labor, the Greens and the Liberals. They ought to start doing this as candidates. Even if they fail to get elected, this would not be wasted effort.
Independents do not deserve to take seats in the Assembly simply because they represent a different course for the territory.
But if in the next eight months a group of independents can prove they would handle the balance of power carefully, offer worthwhile contributions to this city's political debate and present a smart alternative to the status quo, they would come to deserve voters' consideration.
