The one thing I want from this election is simple.

As a politically engaged millennial (read: tragic nerd), my love for Election Day generally knows no bounds.

“Democracy in action!” I cry with glee before making my way to the nearest polling booth to look for a freshly sizzled sausage.

Along with this unbridled enthusiasm comes a lengthy election wish list. Some of these items I know are highly unlikely to ever eventuate, whereas others are realistically within reach. Usually, they are things like housing affordability and meaningful refugee policy, an assurance on the structure of Medicare and commitments to education funding.

The 2016 election Prime Minister candidates. Source: Getty. 

And while I do care about all of those things this year, my one primary request is simple. I’m just looking for a Prime Minister that’s going to stick around.

Maybe it’s because I’m a child of divorce and have abandonment issues, but in the nine years that I’ve been voting, I have never seen a Prime Minister serve a full-term. No one my age has.

Remember this guy? What a lifetime ago. Source: Facebook. 

There was Kevin ’07, who promised change and a new era of politics, modelling himself as the opposite of John Howard and his old world views.

Then there was Gillard, who navigated a hung parliament better than Ayrton Senna on a racetrack in wet weather, but because Rudd wasn’t done yet, Gillard was deposed and he returned.

And then there was Gillard. Source: Getty. 

Then came Abbott, who thought reinstating knights and dames was a good idea and said his greatest achievement as the minister for women had been abolishing the carbon tax. So, Turnbull took over and here we are now.

In just under a decade we’ve seen five different leaders come and go. By Saturday that figure may be up to six. And while many would argue those leadership changes were necessary, my point is that I’m only at the start of my voting life and I’m already fatigued by it all.

Who could forget Abbott? Lucky number three in the PM raffle. Source: Getty. 

I was raised to believe that voting in the national election was not just a right and requirement, but a privilege. After all, there are countless countries throughout the world that dream of being able to control their leadership.

But after just three elections, those words, despite how important and true I know them to be, are slipping further away as my disillusionment and disappointment grows.

Speaking to friends earlier this week, I found I wasn’t the only one that felt this way.

And here we are now. Source: Getty. 

“Honestly, I can’t even tell which one is talking on TV anymore,” one friend said sadly.

“I know it’s important to vote, but both parties seem to pay so little attention what we actually want these days that I can’t help thinking what’s the point?” another admitted.

“Look at same sex marriage,” he continued. “It’s clear the majority of the country supports it, and they’re still going to have a plebiscite and use $160 million of taxpayers money to confirm it anyway. As though we might have all got it wrong or misunderstood what it really is.”

Could this be leader number 6? Source: Getty. 

And while I know that fundamentally, we vote for a party and not a leader, no one can pretend that the past nine years of leadership musical chairs hasn't taken its toll on people's engagement.

Stability isn’t just important for continuity; it’s imperative to allow meaningful political debate to flourish.

Issues like saving the Great Barrier Reef and tackling intergenerational disadvantage. Issues like same sex marriage and delivering affordable childcare. Issues that get lost every time there’s so much as a hint of restlessness within a party and take months to find their way back onto the national agenda.

I’m sick of hearing about who stabbed who, what wrong turns were made and how the party is now getting back on track and listening to the people once more.

It may sound simple or even misguided, but I just want to see the same face in the race the next time the barbecues and bunting are pulled out of storage and we find ourselves back at the booths once more.