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Articles on Electoral law

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Some voters in New South Wales may be forced to vote in a different electorate at the next federal election following a recent redistribution. AAP/Paul Miller

Explainer: how do seat redistributions work?

Any redistribution of electoral boundaries may significantly impact how parties are represented in the parliament. But how does Australia’s system of changing seat boundaries actually work?
The O'Farrell government had a law limiting political donations struck down by the High Court. AAP/Dan Himbrechts

Follow the money: the difficult path to political donation reform

It is unfortunate that it is only scandals and the perception of corruption or criminal involvement that prompt moves to reform Australia’s political finance regime.
NSW is expected to see a surge in online voting before the March 28 election – but for peace of mind, old-fashioned paper ballots are still hard to beat. Paul Miller/AAP

NSW’s online gamble: why internet and phone voting is too risky

The NSW election will be Australia’s biggest test of electronic voting, with up to 250,000 votes set to be cast online or by phone. But many questions remain about the integrity and privacy of those votes.
If recent trends hold, early voting in Australia is here to stay. AAP/Dan Peled

Why more and more Australians are voting before election day

As counting for the Queensland state election continues, the Electoral Commission of Queensland has reported a record number of pre-poll votes. More than 200,000 Queenslanders cast their vote early. This…
Does Labor leader Annastacia Palaszczuk (left), Queensland Premier Campbell Newman, or someone else get your vote? Under Queensland’s electoral system, people can choose between ‘just vote 1’ or numbering more boxes. AAP/David Kapernick

Are Queenslanders in danger of ‘wasting’ their votes?

This weekend, Queenslanders are being urged to “just vote 1” by the Liberal National government, just as Labor has done in the past. Premier Campbell Newman warned that “wasted votes going to independents…
Corruption-buster Tony Fitzgerald is urging Queenslanders to lodge a protest vote against the major parties if they want to see real political reform. AAP/Dan Peled

Four ways to vote for a better democracy in Queensland

Tony Fitzgerald had a point when he recently urged Queenslanders not to vote for either of the major parties in the January 31 state election. The 73-year-old, who headed Queensland’s landmark corruption…
Parties who gained a very small first preference vote look set to be elected to Victoria’s upper house. AAP/Luis Enrique Ascui

How to make Australia’s upper houses truly democratic

The final count for Victoria’s Legislative Council is still some days away, but it appears members elected from micro-parties will hold the balance of power in the upper house. This will be a challenge…
NSW premier Mike Baird’s proposed changes to the state’s electoral funding laws could cost taxpayers more than $10 million extra per electoral cycle. AAP/Dean Lewins

NSW is introducing full public funding of major political parties – by stealth

How much should taxpayers pay to subsidise the running of political parties and their campaigns? If the NSW government gets its way, the answer is going to be quite a lot more. While its proposed changes…
NSW premier Mike Baird has suggested moving to the full public funding of election campaigns in response to the stunning revelations at the state’s ICAC hearings. AAP/Alan Porritt

Public funding of election campaigns won’t end improper influence

The revelations concerning the sorry state of political finance in NSW continue to be aired at public hearings of the state’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). Both the Liberal and Labor…
A judgment on whether voters in Western Australia will return to the polls to re-elect their senators is due on Monday. What’s the legal background to it all? AAP/Paul Miller

In whose interest? The High Court and the WA Senate vote

This week, a lone High Court judge faced a table of 13 barristers to begin resolving the Western Australian Senate election quandary. The hearing took two days and a judgment is likely sooner or later…
Legal, political and even sporting considerations will weigh on the mind of prime minister Kevin Rudd in selecting a new election date. AAP/Lukas Coch

On which Saturday will Kevin Rudd hold the federal election?

NOTE: This piece has been updated on July 2 to reflect the scheduled sittings of federal parliament. One of the most important decisions now for new prime minister Kevin Rudd is selecting the date for…

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