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voting melb

Each State and Territory elects multiple Senators using a preferential voting system. Each State has twelve Senate positions with six year terms and each territory has two Senate positions with three year terms. 

At a Half-Senate Federal election only six of the twelve Senate positions for each state become vacant, but all Territory Senate positions become vacant. At a Full-Senate election, following a double dissolution as in 2016, all Senate positions become vacant.

1. The best way to get good government is to elect the right people in the Senate, regardless of which party wins government in the House of Representatives.

There are two ways to complete your Senate ballot paper validly:

a. Above The Line Voting

You must number at least 6 boxes, but we strongly recommend numbering at least 80% of the boxes, above the line in order of your preference; starting with '1' for your first preference and then in order of preference until all boxes are marked. This means you choose the order of the Parties and accept the preference order in which each Party has listed its Candidates.

OR

b. Below The Line Voting

You must number at least 12 boxes, but we strongly recommend numbering at least 80% of the boxes, below the line in order of your preference, starting with '1' for your first preference and then in order of preference until all boxes are marked. This means you choose the order of the Candidates to give you maximum control of your preferences.

Important Notes

  • Whether you vote Above or Below The Line, we strongly recommend numbering at least 80% of those boxes because, if we don’t, there are high risks that:
    • Our votes will fragment. Our votes fragment when different good people vote for different good Parties or Candidates; but that can result in few or no good candidates being elected. But if we number at least 80% of boxes, it is far more likely to result in more good candidates being elected. It also makes it harder for Parties and Candidates with bad policies to win.
    • Your vote will exhaust. A vote exhausts when all the Parties or Candidates you have marked drop out of the race, so your vote has nowhere else to go and so has no say whatsoever in the election of the last Senator. That means part of your vote has been wasted.
  • It is safer to number every box. Why? If you leave blank boxes, your vote can easily be made informal, i.e. made useless, by an unscrupulous person marking one or more extra 1’s on you ballot paper.

2. Most voters take the quick and easy option of numbering 1-6 parties above the line when completing their Senate ballot paper. This has high risk of fragmentation and exhaustion as explained above.

3. It is far better to number at least 80% of the boxes above the line, even better to number all.

4. Best of all is to number every box below the line, but that is difficult and risks making mistakes.

There is a very important condition… Whether you vote above or below the line, make sure you get the numbers of your preferences right. While the AEC has ways of minimising the impact of an incorrectly numbered ballot, there is an impact that reduces the preference you intended.

No matter which party wins government (in the House of Representatives) the Senate’s composition will be crucial to shaping the future - so please vote wisely.

voting melb

By David d'Lima, FamilyVoice Australia

After dodging the enthusiastic partisans who wave a multitude of how-to-vote cards, the voters in polling booths across our nation must complete their House of Representatives ballot paper and their Senate voting form. But then what happens?

In this short article, FamilyVoice Australia National Secretary David d'Lima describes the journey of your green House of Representatives form, once it disappears into the dark recesses of the ballot box.

After Australian citizens have dutifully considered their verdict, and once we have reached the close of voting on election night, the completed ballot papers are sorted by officials of the Australian Electoral Commission according to the first preference (the number 1) listed on each.

If the pile of ballot papers for one candidate is more than 50% of the total, that candidate is clearly the person preferred by the voters and wins the seat.

Generally that doesn’t happen, in which case the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated from the count, and the pile of ballot papers with a number 1 given to that person are allocated to other candidates’ piles of ballot papers, one paper at a time, according to the number 2 preference on each.

If at that point one candidate has reached a majority of the total ballot papers, that candidate wins.

The above process of eliminating the candidate with the fewest votes continues until one candidate emerges as the one most preferred by the voters. Hence the concept of "preferential voting". We always elect the candidate preferred by the majority in the electorate.

But what about voting 1 for an obscure minor party or little-known independent candidate? That certainly is a way of supporting someone who holds a brave and admirable ambition to make a difference, even if it is clearly not a winnable attempt.

By giving a second or further preference to a major party, the ballot paper may be distributed as described above. Hence, in a seat where no candidate wins on first preferences, the ballot papers for the most obscure or minor party candidate will be the first to help determine which candidate is preferred by the voters.

But since any party gaining more than 4% of the primary vote will receive $2.76 in public funding for each primary vote, every voter who does not vote 1 for a major party effectively deprives that party of that sum of money. Hence each vote for a minor party has funding implications for the major players.

Voters who are less than pleased with their favourite major party, in a seat that will "go to preferences" could subtly punish it by giving it the number 2 preference ahead of some obscure candidate, while effectively voting for the major party.

That possibility is a fascinating undesigned feature of the voting system.

Nevertheless, as we exercise the secret ballot here in Australia, your motives, intentions and preferences are between you and your conscience - but always under the gaze of Almighty God who is the one true law-giver, and on whose behalf we hopefully provide good stewardship as citizens both of heaven and on earth.

Happy voting!

call to action 800

We recommend that concerned Western Australians respond to the Discussion Paper by the Government’s Euthanasia Panel (you can read a copy here.)

The best way to respond would be by attending one of the open public consultation sessions.

The WA Labor Government has announced that additional public forums will be held in Mandurah, Carnarvon, Karratha and Northam due to high public demand. Targeted sessions to assist with providing written feedback have also been scheduled in Albany.

https://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/McGowan/2019/04/More-public-consultation-announced-on-voluntary-assisted-dying.aspx

Otherwise, please send an email to the panel outlining some or all of the concerns below:
To: VADconsultations@health.wa.gov.au


I don’t like the process

The discussion paper states that the panel are not willing to review arguments for or against voluntary euthanasia.
This restrictive call for feedback, includes three metropolitan public consultation sessions, being held on weekday morning’s further restricting opportunity for those in full-time employment.


Show me the data

I agree with the guiding principle on page 15 of your discussion paper that ‘People who may be vulnerable should be protected from coercion and abuse in relation to end of life choices’.

I would like this guiding principle elevated in the mind of our Government and our Members of Parliament as they contemplate creating an assisted suicide system in our State. So that they can fulfil this duty fully informed I request that your final report:

1. Advise on how many people have not been protected from coercion and abuse in each of the fifteen jurisdictions that have tried assisted suicide legislation and whether any have survived;

2. Advise on what the safeguards were in each of those jurisdictions that failed to protect those victims;

3. What have been the findings and subsequent recommendations of investigations into wrongful deaths in the other fifteen jurisdictions? (Wrongful deaths can include deaths by assisted suicide or euthanasia following a mistaken diagnosis, missing signs of treatable depression or overlooking subtle coercion by family members.)

4. Advise what redress was available to the families of the victims in each of the instances where the victim did not survive; 5. Recommend what an acceptable number of Western Australian casualties would be

If you have any questions, please contact our national office: 1300 365 965

QueenslandElectionVoteWisely2020

The 2020 Queensland Election is right around the corner and one of the two major parties will form government.

Whichever one ends up holding power will ultimately decide how important matters of family, faith and freedom are approached.

That's why FamilyVoice has released the "Know the Key Issues" guide to help you make an informed vote on Saturday, October 31.

This document is based on party statements, platform documents, policies and bills up to September 2020.

“Our key message for the upcoming October 31 election is be informed, know the key issues and vote wisely. The key moral issues are so vital in this election. Your vote can make a difference,” said FamilyVoice National Director Peter Downie.

"We strongly encourage you to share our guide far and wide with everyone you know who may be concerned about family, faith and freedom in this election," Mr Downie said.

"We encourage you to prayerfully consider who you support and vote for in this election and to email your local candidates asking them about their personal stances on key issues.

“We are keen to hear what responses you receive, so please feel free to email them to policy@familyvoice.org.au," he said

>> Download “Know the Key Issues”<<

 

Watch our QLD Election Webinar here:

QLD Election Video Image 

QueenslandElectionVoteWisely2020

The 2020 Australian Capital Territory Election will be held on Saturday, October 17.

One of the two major parties will form government and will ultimately decide how important matters of family, faith and freedom are approached. FamilyVoice has released the "Know the Key Issues" guide to help you make an informed vote.

The document is based on party statements, platform documents, policies and bills up to September 2020.

"Our Vote Wisely guide assists voters to understand where the major parties stand on matters of faith, family and freedom so that they can decide who to support," said FamilyVoice ACT Director Greg Bondar.

"Our key message for the upcoming October 17 election is be informed, know the key issues and vote wisely. Your vote can make a difference.

"We strongly encourage you to share our guide far and wide with everyone you know who may be concerned about family, faith and freedom in this election," Mr Bondar said.

"We encourage you to prayerfully consider who you support and vote for in this election and to email your local candidates asking them about their personal stances on key issues.

"We are keen to hear what responses you receive, so please feel free to email them to policy@familyvoice.org.au," he said.

>> Download “Know the Key Issues”<< 

 

Watch our ACT Election Webinar here:

ELECTION Webinar PowerPoint Slide Templates page001