Greg Butler has been in the game of politics, on and off, since 1977.
Over 21 campaigns, including this one, he has attempted to be elected as a representative of the Australian people.
In all those years since he hasn't wavered in his pursuit of political office.
But what keeps him going, this time as a candidate for the New South Wales seat of Eden-Monaro?
And what change has he seen in the political landscape over the past 45 years?
'I was a little disappointed I didn't get arrested'
Born in Goomalling in Western Australia, Mr Butler moved east with his parents at six months old.
He spent six years growing up in Bega in southern New South Wales and later moved to Wollongong.
In 1977, his political career began when he ran for the position of Lord Mayor of Wollongong.
Unsuccessful, he would in the years that followed join the Australian Democrats — an emerging party led by former Liberal politician Don Chipp.
In Mr Butler's eyes, the Australian Democrats were a centrist party that amalgamated the policies of parties that existed at the time, including the Australia Party and the environmentalist group United Tasmania.
It was during this early time that he made his mark on politics by joining protests, run by the Tasmanian Wilderness Society, against the damming of the Franklin River.
"They were organising people to jump over a fence and walk down a road towards the dam site," he said.
"The government was arresting anyone who did that, even though it's public land, so I said, 'righto, we'll all go through that experience and find out exactly what's involved with that'.
"So I went through the non-aggressiveness training that they had, jumped over the fence, walked down towards the dam site.
"At the time, I was a little disappointed I didn't get arrested, but they didn't arrest anyone else after that, so it was a bit of a watershed moment."
An early interest in sustainability
Forty-five years of campaigning — while still working in between in various jobs, including on Canberra's light rail project — have given Mr Butler a sense of progress but also frustration.
He said some things were much the same as when his political career began as they are now.
"And nobody was really getting on with policies. There was a gap between them, [and] we filled the gap."
An engineering major at university, he was passionate about sustainability and the environment at the time and said it was a much more marginal issue then than it is now.
But on the status of certain other social issues, he is not so pleased.
"We still have three million Australians living in poverty," he said.
And that is one of the main reasons Mr Butler has once again decided to contest an Australian election, despite the rigours of the campaign beat.
"There just aren't the safety nets there, there isn't the system there to lift people out of poverty and get them participating in society as they should."
Minor parties claiming greater footholds
The Australian Democrats describe themselves as "the watchdog of the Senate".
Environmentalism, a voice to parliament and poverty are some of the party's central policies.
Over the years the party has also drawn some notable members, including Cheryl Kernot, who was an MP representing Queensland between 1990 and 1997.
As a long-time member of the Australian Democrats, Mr Butler believes minor parties are starting to gain more of a foothold than previously in Australian politics.
"They're starting to get a bit of traction to the concept that you can actually vote for the candidate of your choice," he said.
"At the very start, there were people saying, 'oh, you waste your vote if you vote for [the Australian] Democrats'.
"And what's happening now is that Labor and Liberal are now starting to struggle to convince people that they are the only choice."
After 45 years, other duties are calling
As for whether he will run again, Mr Butler, at 69, is not certain.
After all these years, he has other things he wants to do.
"My wife's been very patient and understanding and I have promised her things and this has put that on hold for a while," he said.
However, he said campaign number 21 was a significant birthday, and that it should still be celebrated in some way.
