Latest news with #CommonwealthElectoralAct1918
West Australian
3 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
Keep the Sheep campaigned 'mothballed‘ for now but organisers say it is not the end
The Australian live export industry's Keep the Sheep campaign has been 'mothballed' for the time being, with contractors laid off and leftover funds set to be used to keep the group's website running. But Keep the Sheep leaders say it is not the end of the impassioned campaign that urged voters to 'put Labor last' ahead of the May Federal election and hoped to have the Albanese Government's plan to ban live sheep exports overturned. In a statement issued to farmers and stakeholders on June 4, the group's company secretary Mark Harvey-Sutton — who is also the chief executive of the Australian Livestock Exporters Association — opened up about the group's soul-searching after Labor's election win. He said the group had 'taken a hiatus' after the Federal election but wanted to 'be transparent' with its volunteers about the future of the organisation so many had poured their time and energy into supporting. 'To minimise our costs, we rolled off the contractors who were working on Keep the Sheep following the election,' he said. 'This is to ensure that our ongoing donor income is directed to maintaining the website and helping us stay compliant with our obligations under the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918.' Mr Harvey-Sutton said Keep the Sheep — which was funded by industry donations — did not have 'much left in the tank' in terms of cash flow and savings. 'We spent nearly all the money we raised on campaigning and pushing our message into key seats,' he said. 'What remains will be used to cover our debts and preserve our resources to ensure the company remains solvent and our key asset of the website is maintained. 'This essentially means we are mothballing Keep the Sheep for now. 'We realise this may be disappointing. But it is not the end.' While the campaign mobilised hundreds of volunteers and united WA's sheep farming industry, it failed to have the desired impact when Anthony Albanese' Labor Government stormed to a second term of power in May. Labor's plan to end live sheep exports from Australia by May 2028 now looks set to become a reality, despite the industry arguing it has modernised in recent years to have the best animal welfare standards in the world. Despite this, Mr Harvey-Sutton said he was proud of what Keep the Sheep had achieved — saying it had 'set the tone for agriculture advocacy into the future' in terms of bringing regional issues to the forefront. 'We originally started Keep the Sheep as a pressure movement to try to prevent the legislation for the ban passing the Parliament,' Mr Harvey-Sutton said. 'When we were unsuccessful, we pivoted to applying political pressure to attempt to reverse the ban, or reverse the government. 'The collective efforts of every one of our volunteers built a movement, gave agriculture a voice, and meant that our issue could not be ignored. 'We know there are challenges on the horizon that will require what we have built, to create an understanding for regional communities and bring their issues to the forefront, in both regional and metro areas.' Mr Harvey-Sutton said the organisation needed 'time and support' to develop and create something that 'honoured' the work of its volunteers and campaign managers, but exactly what that looked like was still being determined. 'We ask for your patience as we work through this process, so that we can create a powerful voice for rural communities that will echo around the country,' he said. Labor took its pledge to end live sheep exports to the last two elections, with legislation to ban live sheep exports by sea passing Federal Parliament on July 1, 2024. WA farmers are set to be hardest hit by the end of the trade, with 500,000 sheep exported from Australia last year, mainly to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Nearly all the export ships set sail from WA to markets mostly in the Middle East. Australia also ships about 750,000 head of cattle a year, with some of the cattle loaded on live sheep export ships.
Daily Mail
04-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Wild conspiracy erupts over 'pencil voting' in Australia - but here's why you don't use a pen
An Aussie has questioned why voters are given pencils instead of pens when marking their ballot paper, raising fears their preferences could be erased and replaced. A 19-year-old first-time voter questioned the method after heading to a polling booth on Saturday. 'Why do they give us pencils to vote?' they wrote on Reddit. 'I know this is extremely unlikely to even happen but voting in pencil means if someone gets my ballot they can erase and change my vote. 'Sure you can also somewhat erase ink but it's a lot harder, such a simple change for an increase in security so why the pencil?' The Australian Electoral Commission states 'since 2020 under section 206 of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 the AEC is required to provide an "implement or method for voters to mark their ballot papers".' Prior to the 2020 change, the provision of pencils used to be a legal requirement. The AEC has 'found from experience that pencils are the most reliable implements' for marking ballot papers. Unlike pens, pencils do not run out and polling booth staff check and sharpen pencils throughout election day. The AEC also notes that pencils can be stored more easily between elections and 'they work better in tropical areas'. Although pencils are the writing tool provided to voters at polling centres, voters are allowed to mark their ballot paper with a pen if they wish to do so. In response to the 19-year-old's question, one Aussie reassured the first time voter that polling stations' security prevents ballot paper tampering. 'There are no erasers provided,' they said. 'So when the ballots are scrutinised the erasure immediately looks like a red flag, but also no one would have time to do it. 'If they had opportunity to erase your ballot paper, it would be easier for them just to replace it with a fake one, in which case a pen isn't going to save it.' Another voter explained they were provided with a replacement ballot paper rather than an eraser during one election after making a mistake. 'One time I was filling in the complete below the line senate paper, when if you did below the line you had to complete all 1 to 176 votes,' they wrote. 'When I made a mistake, duplicated a number, so I asked if they had an eraser- they did not, they had to cancel that paper and give me a new one instead.' Gen Z and millennials outnumbered baby boomer voters in the federal election for the first time ever on Saturday. Paul Strangio, emeritus professor in politics at Monash University, told the ABC their mindset was very different to the older generations. 'They're not reaching the sort of milestones that previous generations did, such as home ownership, marrying [and] having children,' he said. 'Those things used to predispose people to becoming more conservative in their outlook.'
ABC News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
What happens if I don't vote in the election? What are the penalties?
In countries like the United States, people don't have to vote in elections. But that's not the case for voters in Australia. Laws require eligible voters to participate in elections, with penalties for people who fail to perform their civic duty. Here's what you need to know about voting rules. Election essentials: Find out where your When is the federal election? Saturday, May 3 . Do I have to vote? Voting is compulsory in Australia. So if you're an Australian citizen aged 18 or older, and you've enrolled to vote then, yes , you have to vote. That's the law. Specifically, it's And you'll be penalised for not voting unless you have "a valid and sufficient reason" for failing to vote. What's the penalty for not voting? You may have to pay what the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) calls an "administrative penalty" fee . If you fail to do that, you could end up in court . What's the fine for not voting? Again, technically it's an "administrative penalty", not a fine. The amount is $20. However, if the matter goes to court, you could be fined more. For example, Voting is compulsory in Australia. ( ABC News: Alexandra Beech ) What's a 'valid and sufficient' reason for not voting? That's not defined in the law. Here's what "It is at the discretion of the AEC's Divisional Returning Officer (DRO) for each electorate to determine whether you have provided a valid and sufficient reason for not voting. "The DRO will make a determination in accordance with section 245 (5) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 or section 45 (5) of the Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Act 1984. "The DRO will consider the merits of your individual case and take into account any specific circumstances at the polling places within their division in making a determination." Read more about the federal election: Want even more? Here's where you can find all our 2025 Catch the latest interviews and in-depth coverage on What if I tried to vote but couldn't? You might still get a notice from the AEC. But this doesn't mean you'll have to pay — it just gives you the opportunity to tell the AEC about what happened on election day that meant you couldn't vote. Here's what the AEC's website says on that: "Please provide details of the reasons why you were unable to vote in the relevant section of the notice, and return it to the AEC. "The (Divisional Returning Officer) will consider the merits of your individual case and take into account any specific circumstances at the polling places within their division." How many people were fined last time? The AEC issued first-instance notices to 1,268,907 people after the 2022 federal election. These were, as the AEC refers to them, "apparent failure to vote" notices, which gives people the chance to give the AEC more information. That might include confirmation that they did vote or the reason why they didn't vote. The AEC said 287,074 electors gave a valid and sufficient reason for not voting in response to these notices. "Some electors opt to pay the administrative penalty instead of responding to our correspondence with further information," an AEC spokesperson said. "Others provide reasons that are not deemed valid and sufficient and may receive further correspondence from the AEC to finalise their matters." This could mean the AEC asking for more information, but it could also mean the commission requesting the person pay the administrative penalty. 226 people were convicted by a court and fined for not voting at the last federal election. "This number does not include any matters for which an alternative sentence was issued by the court, or those who may have provided a valid and sufficient reason following the issue of a summons to appear in court," an AEC spokesperson said. Having trouble seeing this form? Try
