Experts reject claim Australian PM naturalised migrants to influence election
"The bastards are literally importing votes via excessive immigration because they know that local Australian voters are leaving the major parties on (sic) droves."
The post shares a screenshot of an article saying Australia will hold its "biggest election of all time" as "an extra 710,000 voters have signed up with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC)".
Australia is set to go to the polls on May 3 with "more voters on the electoral roll than ever before", according to the AEC (archived here and here).
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is polling neck-and-neck with opposition leader Peter Dutton, a former immigration minister who advocates cutting migration by 25 percent (archived link).
Similar claims have spread across social media, with comments suggesting some users believe new migrants make up the majority of first-time voters.
"Most of them are Albo's illegal insurgents that have no legal right to vote or have access to any form of welfare," one user said.
Another said: "That comes as no surprise. Just like Biden did with the open southern border ... they should do jail time for that," alluding to a similar false claim that surfaced ahead of the US presidential election in 2024.
A spokesperson for the AEC told AFP on April 9 that while new Australian citizens make up approximately 30 percent of growth in the electoral roll, the vast majority "is not caused by migration, but by Australians turning 18 and enrolling to vote for the first time."
"It is not correct to say that the 710,000 new voters added to the electoral roll since the 2022 federal election are immigrants."
Tiziana Torresi, a migration expert from the University of Adelaide, also said the conferral of Australian citizenship to migrants is "strictly regulated" and "the idea that such a process could be applied en masse in such a short frame of time is far-fetched" (archived link).
Torresi told AFP on the same day that to be eligible for citizenship, a person must have permanent residency, have lived in Australia for at least four years, and meet strict criteria, including passing an English language test and being physically present in the country for specific periods of time (archived link).
This means that new citizens enrolled to vote in the upcoming election would have arrived in Australia before May 2021 -- well before the Albanese government.
Graeme Orr, a law professor at the University of Queensland, pushed back on the idea that the government can manipulate citizenship numbers for political gain (archived link).
"Permanent migrants can choose to apply for citizenship -- governments do not impose it," he told AFP on April 10, noting that Australia's naturalisation policies have remained unchanged for years.
The latest naturalisation figures show more than 192,000 people became Australian citizens between 2023 and 2024, which Orr said is in line with past trends (archived link).
"Curiously, the number is actually lower than in the year before Covid, under a conservative government," he added.
He also dismissed the idea that new citizens vote as a bloc, given their diverse background "from liberal democracies, like the UK and New Zealand, and conservative countries in South Asia and the Middle East".
AFP has fact-checked other misinformation about the Australian election here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
2 hours ago
Trump admin live updates: Trump to sign EO forming Olympics 2028 task force
Live Trump has long touted that he helped secure the 2028 Olympics for the U.S. 2:25 President Donald Trump speaks with reporters at Lehigh Valley International Airport, Aug. 3, 2025, in Allentown, Pa. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images By President Donald Trump is back to Washington, where he says he's expecting this week to hire a new commissioner for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The president's envoy is expected to travel this week to Russia, as the White House continues pushing for negotiations to end Moscow's war in Ukraine. Latest headlines: Aug 04, 2025, 7:19 PM EDT Anonymous victims oppose Epstein grand jury files release Aug 04, 2025, 2:56 PM EDT Trump megabill could add $4.1T to deficit over next decade, new analysis states Aug 04, 2025, 2:35 PM EDT India responds to Trump's tariff hike Here's how the news is developing. 3 Updates Aug 04, 2025, 2:56 PM EDT Trump megabill could add $4.1T to deficit over next decade, new analysis states A new analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said President Donald Trump's sweeping tax cut and spending bill passed last month will create $718 billion in additional debt-service costs, bringing the law's overall debt projection to $4.1 trillion over 10 years. "As a result, and net of any changes in borrowing for federal credit programs, the agency estimates that the legislation will increase debt held by the public at the end of 2034 by 9.5 percentage points relative to CBO's January 2025 baseline budgetary projections of gross domestic product (GDP). Other factors, such as administrative actions affecting tariffs and immigration, also have affected deficits and debt since January 2025 and will be reflected in CBO's next baseline," the report stated. < Previously, the CBO said the Senate's final version of Trump's massive policy and tax bill would add $3.4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade. The new analysis released on Monday comes after Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., requested an update on the bill's impact on the debt. -ABC News' Lauren Peller India responds to Trump's tariff hike The Indian government responded on Monday after President Donald Trump posted on social media that he will be "substantially raising" tariffs on the nation over its purchases of Russian oil. India's Ministry of External Affairs released a statement detailing why it buys certain commodities from Russia and called the targeting of India "unjustified and unreasonable." "India's imports are meant to ensure predictable and affordable energy costs to the Indian consumer. They are a necessity compelled by global market situation. However, it is revealing that the very nations criticizing India are themselves indulging in trade with Russia. Unlike our case, such trade is not even a vital national compulsion," the ministry said. Aug 04, 2025, 11:43 AM EDT Trump says he's 'substantially raising' tariffs on India over Russian oil President Donald Trump posted on social media that he will be "substantially raising" tariffs on India over its purchases of Russian oil. "India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits. They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA," Trump wrote. Last week, Trump announced that India will be paying a 25% tariff plus a penalty due to its trade relations with Russia. He hasn't revealed what the penalty would be. His post comes as Trump gave Russia a 10-day deadline, which expires on Friday, to negotiate a ceasefire with Ukraine or else face sanctions. -ABC News' Lalee Ibssa Aug 04, 2025, 9:53 AM EDT Trump says he'll pick an 'exceptional' BLS replacement, continues unfounded claims numbers were 'rigged' President Donald Trump continues to push unfounded claims that last Friday's jobs report was "rigged" in favor of Democrats "in order to make a great Republican Success look less stellar." "I will pick an exceptional replacement," Trump posted on his social media platform. His post comes as the White House says Trump wants his "own people" in charge of the jobs data. Kevin Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council, defended Trump's decision to fire the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics during an appearance on CNBC. "If I'm running the BLS and I have the biggest revision, really think about it, the biggest revision outside of covid in 50 years, then it's incumbent on me to explain why in a very transparent way, to show how the numbers add up, to show exactly where the revision came from and what you're doing to address it so it doesn't happen again. If you don't do that, then you create a circumstance where politicians are going to wonder," he said. Hassett went on to say there was a need to modernize the labor data as he notes Trump wants to get "his people" into the BLS. Though, Hassett did admit the jobs numbers were slower than expected.
Axios
2 hours ago
- Axios
Trump, Murdoch agree to pause WSJ case deposition until after dismissal ruling
President Trump and Rupert Murdoch reached a deal Monday to postpone the media mogul's deposition in a libel lawsuit related to the Wall Street Journal publishing a report on an Epstein birthday book, per court filings. Why it matters: Trump's lawyers had raised concerns about Murdoch's age and health when they asked a federal court in Florida last week to expedite the 94-year-old's deposition, but the deal postpones this until after the outlet's upcoming motion to dismiss the case. Now, neither Murdoch nor the 79-year-old Trump are likely to be deposed for months, per Politico's Josh Gerstein, who first reported on Monday's filing in Miami. Zoom in: "Until Defendants' Motion to Dismiss the Complaint is adjudicated, the Parties agree not to engage in discovery," according to the filing. If the WSJ's motion to dismiss Trump's lawsuit is denied, Murdoch would appear in person for a deposition within 30 days of such a ruling. Murdoch must provide a sworn declaration about his current health condition within three days of a court order approving the agreement and the Australian-born mogul has agreed to provide regular updates on his health, per the filing. Driving the news: Trump is suing Murdoch, the WSJ, its owner Dow Jones, its parent company News Corp. and others over the Journal report last month about a " bawdy" birthday letter" that the outlet said bore the president's name.
2 hours ago
How Russia reins in the internet by blocking websites and isolating it from the rest of the world
TALLINN, Estonia -- YouTube videos that won't load. A visit to a popular independent media website that produces only a blank page. Cellphone internet connections that are down for hours or days. Going online in Russia can be frustrating, complicated and even dangerous. It's not a network glitch but a deliberate, multipronged and long-term effort by authorities to bring the internet under the Kremlin's full control. Authorities adopted restrictive laws and banned websites and platforms that won't comply. Technology has been perfected to monitor and manipulate online traffic. While it's still possible to circumvent restrictions by using virtual private network apps, those are routinely blocked, too. Authorities further restricted internet access this summer with widespread shutdowns of cellphone internet connections and adopting a law punishing users for searching for content they deem illicit. They also are threatening to go after the popular WhatsApp platform while rolling out a new 'national' messenger that's widely expected to be heavily monitored. President Vladimir Putin urged the government to 'stifle' foreign internet services and ordered officials to assemble a list of platforms from 'unfriendly' states that should be restricted. Experts and rights advocates told The Associated Press that the scale and effectiveness of the restrictions are alarming. Authorities seem more adept at it now, compared with previous, largely futile efforts to restrict online activities, and they're edging closer to isolating the internet in Russia. Human Rights Watch researcher Anastasiia Kruope describes Moscow's approach to reining in the internet as 'death by a thousand cuts." "Bit by bit, you're trying to come to a point where everything is controlled.' Kremlin efforts to control what Russians do, read or say online dates to 2011-12, when the internet was used to challenge authority. Independent media outlets bloomed, and anti-government demonstrations that were coordinated online erupted after disputed parliamentary elections and Putin's decision to run again for president. Russia began adopting regulations tightening internet controls. Some blocked websites; others required providers to store call records and messages, sharing it with security services if needed, and install equipment allowing authorities to control and cut off traffic. Companies like Google or Facebook were pressured to store user data on Russian servers, to no avail, and plans were announced for a 'sovereign internet' that could be cut off from the rest of the world. Russia's popular Facebook-like social media platform VK, founded by Pavel Durov long before he launched the Telegram messenger, came under the control of Kremlin-friendly companies. Russia tried to block Telegram between 2018-20 but failed. Prosecutions for social media posts and comments became common, showing that authorities were closely watching the online space. Still, experts had dismissed Kremlin efforts to rein in the internet as futile, arguing Russia was far from building something akin to China's 'Great Firewall,' which Beijing uses to block foreign websites. After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the government blocked major social media like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, as well as Signal and a few other messaging apps. VPNs also were targeted, making it harder to reach restricted websites. YouTube access was disrupted last summer in what experts called deliberate throttling by authorities. The Kremlin blamed YouTube owner Google for not maintaining its hardware in Russia. The platform has been wildly popular in Russia, both for entertainment and for voices critical of the Kremlin, like the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Cloudflare, an internet infrastructure provider, said in June that websites using its services were being throttled in Russia. Independent news site Mediazona reported that several other popular Western hosting providers also are being inhibited. Cyber lawyer Sarkis Darbinyan, founder of Russian internet freedom group Roskomsvoboda, said authorities have been trying to push businesses to migrate to Russian hosting providers that can be controlled. He estimates about half of all Russian websites are powered by foreign hosting and infrastructure providers, many offering better quality and price than domestic equivalents. A 'huge number' of global websites and platforms use those providers, he said, so cutting them off means those websites 'automatically become inaccessible' in Russia too. Another concerning trend is the consolidation of Russia's internet providers and companies that manage IP addresses, according to a July 30 Human Rights Watch report. Last year, authorities raised the cost of obtaining an internet provider license from 7,500 rubles (about $90) to 1 million rubles (over $12,300), and state data shows that more than half of all IP addresses in Russia are managed by seven large companies, with Rostelecom, Russia's state telephone and internet giant, accounting for 25%. The Kremlin is striving 'to control the internet space in Russia, and to censor things, to manipulate the traffic,' said HRW's Kruope. A new Russian law criminalized online searches for broadly defined 'extremist' materials. That could include LGBTQ+ content, opposition groups, some songs by performers critical of the Kremlin — and Navalny's memoir, which was designated as extremist last week. Right advocates say it's a step toward punishing consumers — not just providers — like in Belarus, where people are routinely fined or jailed for reading or following certain independent media outlets. Stanislav Seleznev, cyber security expert and lawyer with the Net Freedom rights group, doesn't expect ubiquitous prosecutions, since tracking individual online searches in a country of 146 million remains a tall order. But even a limited number of cases could scare many from restricted content, he said. Another major step could be blocking WhatsApp, which monitoring service Mediascope said had over 97 million monthly users in April. WhatsApp 'should prepare to leave the Russian market,' said lawmaker Anton Gorelkin, and a new 'national' messenger, MAX, developed by social media company VK, would take its place. Telegram, another popular messenger, probably won't be restricted, he said. MAX, promoted as a one-stop shop for messaging, online government services, making payments and more, was rolled out for beta tests but has yet to attract a wide following. Over 2 million people registered by July, the Tass news agency reported. Its terms and conditions say it will share user data with authorities upon request, and a new law stipulates its preinstallation in all smartphones sold in Russia. State institutions, officials and businesses are actively encouraged to move communications and blogs to MAX. Anastasia Zhyrmont of the Access Now internet freedom group said both Telegram and WhatsApp were disrupted in Russia in July in what could be a test of how potential blockages would affect internet infrastructure. It wouldn't be uncommon. In recent years, authorities regularly tested cutting off the internet from the rest of the world, sometimes resulting in outages in some regions. Darbinyan believes the only way to make people use MAX is to 'shut down, stifle' every Western alternative. 'But again, habits ... do not change in a year or two. And these habits acquired over decades, when the internet was fast and free,' he said. Government media and internet regulator Roskomnadzor uses more sophisticated methods, analyzing all web traffic and identifying what it can block or choke off, Darbinyan said. It's been helped by 'years of perfecting the technology, years of taking over and understanding the architecture of the internet and the players,' as well as Western sanctions and companies leaving the Russian market since 2022, said Kruope of Human Rights Watch. Russia is 'not there yet' in isolating its internet from the rest of the world, Darbinyan said, but Kremlin efforts are 'bringing it closer.'
