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AEC Delays ACT Redistribution But Capital May Get Extra Seat

Dec 06, 2013

The Australian Electoral Commission has delayed a scheduled redistribution of electoral boundaries in the Australian Capital Territory but the nation’s capital may get an extra seat in time for the next election.

Redistributions must take place every seven years in each state and territory. They also occur when enrolments in more than one-third of all divisions, or one seat in the territories, deviate from the average by more than 10%. Redistributions also occur when the number of representatives to which a state or territory is entitled changes due to population increase or decline.

The last redistribution in the ACT took place in 2004. The AEC has deferred the next redistribution until the end of 2014 when the next determination of membership entitlement is due. It is expected that the determination will increase the ACT’s representation from two to three seats. [Read more…]

Filed Under: A.C.T., Redistributions Tagged With: , ,

AEC Finalises $58 Million Of Election Funding To Candidates In Federal Election

Nov 27, 2013

The Australian Electoral Commission has made payments to political parties and candidates totalling $58,076,456.01, following the 2013 federal election.

Election funding is provided to parties and candidates polling at least 4% of the primary vote in House and Senate elections. Each first preference vote was worth 248.800 cents.

The payment is indexed. At the 2010 election, each vote was worth 231.191 cents and a total of $53,163,385 was paid to candidates. [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, A.L.P., Election Funding, Greens, Independents, Liberal Party, Palmer United Party, The Nationals Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Full Text Of A.E.C. Election Petition Regarding W.A. Senate Election

Nov 18, 2013

This is the full text of the election petition lodged by the Australian Electoral Commission with the Court of Disputed Returns.

The petition chronicles the conduct of the Western Australian Senate election count and the subsequent recount. It provides details of the 1,370 lost votes that could not be included in the recount.

The petition argues that “the result of the election was likely to be affected” by the missing ballot papers. It says: “In all the circumstances – including the number of missing ballot papers, the narrowness of the margin at the 50th exclusion point and the differences which, in the usual case, emerge between the fresh scrutiny and a re-count…it is not possible to conclude either with certainty, or on the balance of probabilities, either that that the fifth and sixth respondents (Dropulich and Ludlam) have been correctly returned, or an alternative return of the seventh and eighth respondents (Wang and Pratt) accurately, or more accurately, reflects the true intentions of the voters.”

The petition says “it is just that the Election should be declared void” for the purposes of Section 362(3) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act.

Text of election petition lodged by the Australian Electoral Commission with the Court of Disputed Returns.

IN THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA
CANBERRA REGISTRY NO C 17 OF 2013 [Read more…]

Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, AEC Tagged With: , , ,

Electoral Commission Asks Court Of Disputed Returns To Void W.A. Senate Result

Nov 15, 2013

The Australian Electoral Commission has lodged a petition with the Court of Disputed Returns asking it to declare void the result of the Western Australian Senate count.

The petition’s argument rests on the 1,370 missing ballot papers that could not be included in the recount that saw 3 Liberal, 1 Labor, 1 Greens and 1 Sports Party candidates elected. Due to the closeness of the result, the missing ballots had the potential to affect the result.

The AEC’s petition all but guarantees a new election in Western Australia next year.

The High Court will sit as the Court of Disputed Returns to decide on the petition.

Media release from the Australian Electoral Commission.

Petition lodged with Court of Disputed Returns

The three-person Australian Electoral Commission today authorised the Electoral Commissioner to lodge a petition with the Court of Disputed Returns in respect of the 2013 Western Australian Senate election.

The petition was lodged at approximately 2:30pm AEDT today.

The petition seeks an order from the Court that the WA Senate election of six senators be declared void.

Given the closeness of the margins that favoured the final two declared candidates, the petition is based on the premise that the inability to include 1370 missing ballot papers in the recount of the WA Senate election means that the election was likely to be affected for the purposes of s 362(3) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918.

As the matter is now before the Court the AEC will not be making any further comment.

The AEC recently appointed Mr Mick Keelty AO to conduct an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the missing ballots. Mr Keelty’s inquiries are continuing.

Editorial note: For copies of the petition, please contact the High Court Registry’s public information officer (Canberra) during their business hours. The AEC will not be posting or distributing the document.

Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, AEC, Senate Tagged With: , ,

Missing W.A. Senate Votes Would Have Produced A One-Vote Turnaround

Nov 08, 2013

The Australian Electoral Commission has released preference information about the missing Western Australian Senate ballot papers which shows a probable reversal of the official result by just one vote.

After the first count of votes, the final two positions went to the Palmer United Party and the ALP. The result hinged on a 14-vote difference between preferences flowing to the Australian Christians and the Shooters and Fishers party.

The result was overturned by the recount and saw the Greens Senator Scott Ludlam and the Sports Party candidate, Wayne Dropulich, elected. This time, the outcome was decided by a difference of 12 votes between the Christians and the Shooters.

The recount did not include 1,375 votes which had mysteriously disappeared since the first count. However, since all the missing ballots were above-the-line votes, the first count result is available and regarded as accurate.

The ABC’s Antony Green says the preference flow shows that the original result from the first count would have prevailed if the missing votes were included in the recount, but the difference at the significant point of allocation would have been just one vote.

The data released by the AEC does nothing to cast doubt on the widespread belief that the Court of Disputed Returns will void the election and order a re-run.

The media release from the AEC with details of the count is shown below:


Filed Under: 2013 Federal Election, A.L.P., AEC, Greens, Palmer United Party Tagged With: , , , , ,
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