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halloranelderThe House of Representatives currently has 151 members, and all of the seats are up for election.
The number of seats in the House of Reps varies over time. Each elected member is representing a single geographic area, and the aim is to have each of these areas include approximately the same number of electors. As a result the AEC (Australian Electoral Commission, an independent body tasked with the job of managing Australian elections) periodically resizes and reallocates the electorates to try and keep as close as possible to that goal.
In 1984 the number of seats went from 125 to 148, then in 1993 it went back down to 147, back up to 148 in 1996, up to 150 in 2001, and then to the current 151 in 2019.
A House of Reps ballot paper is green and will list all the nominated candidates in a randomly selected order (this random selection is to stop people changing their names to Aaaaaaaron so they get first on the list). To vote you number in the box next to each candidate from 1 to the number of candidates, with the 1 going to who you most want to get elected, the 2 to the next best, and so one.
So, if there are seven candidates, you must number them from 1 to 7, filling in all the boxes. According to the rules, if a ballot is only partially filled in it won't count as a formal vote, however I have heard of a lot of cases where a partially filled in ballot is considered valid up to the point it runs out of valid votes. However, this is not guaranteed, so it's best to simply make sure you have filled them all on.
One very important note: Your vote is required to be secret. As a result, anything on the ballot that identifies you are the voter will make the ballot invalid and it won't be counted. Drawing penises on the ballot however is fine, but be aware they've seen it all before. :)
It is theoretically possible for the final two candidates to have the same number of votes at the end of the preference counting. This is where the Division Returning Officer comes in. The Division Returning Officer is the one person ultimately responsible for ensuring the election runs smoothly in that Division (aka Electorate). When a person is appointed Division Returning Officer, their electoral enrolment is immediately transferred to the electorate they will be administering, however they are not entitled to vote. Instead they will have two special powers. Firstly, if there are two candidates with equal lowest number of votes, the Division Returning Officer chooses which one gets excluded first. Secondly, if it does end up with only two remaining with the same number of votes, the Division Returning Officer gets to cast the deciding vote.
The number of seats in the House of Reps varies over time. Each elected member is representing a single geographic area, and the aim is to have each of these areas include approximately the same number of electors. As a result the AEC (Australian Electoral Commission, an independent body tasked with the job of managing Australian elections) periodically resizes and reallocates the electorates to try and keep as close as possible to that goal.
In 1984 the number of seats went from 125 to 148, then in 1993 it went back down to 147, back up to 148 in 1996, up to 150 in 2001, and then to the current 151 in 2019.
A House of Reps ballot paper is green and will list all the nominated candidates in a randomly selected order (this random selection is to stop people changing their names to Aaaaaaaron so they get first on the list). To vote you number in the box next to each candidate from 1 to the number of candidates, with the 1 going to who you most want to get elected, the 2 to the next best, and so one.
So, if there are seven candidates, you must number them from 1 to 7, filling in all the boxes. According to the rules, if a ballot is only partially filled in it won't count as a formal vote, however I have heard of a lot of cases where a partially filled in ballot is considered valid up to the point it runs out of valid votes. However, this is not guaranteed, so it's best to simply make sure you have filled them all on.
One very important note: Your vote is required to be secret. As a result, anything on the ballot that identifies you are the voter will make the ballot invalid and it won't be counted. Drawing penises on the ballot however is fine, but be aware they've seen it all before. :)
Another thing to remember: if you screw up your ballot paper, ask for another one. Voting is a serious business, and the people there are there to help you out, and that includes replacing screwed up ballot papers.
So, you've filled in your ballot paper and dropped it into the correct ballot box. Now what?
Once the polls close at 6:00pm, all the ballot boxes are taken to a secure counting room, and counting begins. Firstly all the ballots are checked to ensure they are properly filled in (a properly filled in vote is call a Formal Vote), and the total count of these is made. Half of this total count (ignoring any fractions) plus one is the number of votes required to be elected in that electorate, an Absolute Majority.
All the votes are tallied according to their first preference. If after the Primary votes are counted anyone has an Absolute Majority, they are elected to the seat and no more counting is needed. If an Absolute Majority hasn't been reached (more likely), then whichever candidate has the least votes is excluded from the running, and all of their votes are reallocated according to their second preference. Again, a check is made to see if an Absolute Majority is reached. If there is, the election is over, otherwise the lowest remaining is again excluded and their votes are reallocated. This repeats until someone has the Absolute Majority. At times this can be until only two candidates remain, but usually it is over before that.
An Example: The 1972 Election for the Division of McMillan.
Total Formal Vote: 49,805
Absolute Majority (50%+1): 24,903
There were five candidates, and their Primary vote was as follows:
Armitage (Liberal Party): 12,025
Buchanan (Independent): 3,113
Hewson (Country Party): 8,282
Houlihan (DLP): 3,583
Mountford (ALP): 22,802
No one has an Absolute Majority, so the candidate with the lowest number of votes (Buchanan) is excluded with the following results:
Armitage: 12,025 + 810 = 12,835
Hewson: 8,282 + 1,980 = 10,262
Houlihan: 3,583 + 183 = 3,721
Mountford: 22,802 + 185 = 22,987
Still no Absolute Majority, so Houlihan is excluded with the lowest remaining votes.
Armitage: 12,835 + 391 = 13,226
Hewson: 10,262 + 3,144 = 13,406
Mountford: 22,987 + 186 = 23,173
Still no Absolute Majority so finally Armitage is excluded.
Hewson: 13,406 + 12,690 = 26,096
Mountford: 23,173 + 536 = 23,709
Resulting in Hewson (Country Party) being elected, despite being third in the Primary votes.
It is theoretically possible for the final two candidates to have the same number of votes at the end of the preference counting. This is where the Division Returning Officer comes in. The Division Returning Officer is the one person ultimately responsible for ensuring the election runs smoothly in that Division (aka Electorate). When a person is appointed Division Returning Officer, their electoral enrolment is immediately transferred to the electorate they will be administering, however they are not entitled to vote. Instead they will have two special powers. Firstly, if there are two candidates with equal lowest number of votes, the Division Returning Officer chooses which one gets excluded first. Secondly, if it does end up with only two remaining with the same number of votes, the Division Returning Officer gets to cast the deciding vote.
