ORDER SOUGHT
The High Court rule that all Australian citizens overseas should be able to vote in national elections, regardless of the length of time since they ceased to reside in Australia.
SUBMISSIONS
1. Inconsistent with Constitution
The idea of voting originates from section 7 and section 24 of the Australian Constitution . Section 7 states that “the senate shall be composed of senators from each State, directly chosen by the people of the State” and section 24 states that “the House of Representatives shall be composed of members directly chosen by the people of the Commonwealth” . This indicates that members of the Commonwealth Parliament must be ‘directly chosen by the people’, which is implemented by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 . The right to vote is expressly given in …show more content…
Section 93(7) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 provides that a holder of a temporary visa or an unlawful non-citizen in not entitled to vote and Section 93(8) also provides that a person who is of unsound mind, or is serving a sentence of 3 years or longer or has been convicted of treason or treachery is not entitled to vote at any Senate or House of Representatives election. Mr X Ocker is an Australian citizen, over 18 years of age, is of sound mind, is not serving a prison sentence and has not been convicted of treason or treachery. Therefore Mr Ocker does not meet any of the criteria set out in Section 93 and so not allowing him to vote would be inconsistent with the Constitution, as it goes against the principle of universal adult
The High Court rule that all Australian citizens overseas should be able to vote in national elections, regardless of the length of time since they ceased to reside in Australia.
SUBMISSIONS
1. Inconsistent with Constitution
The idea of voting originates from section 7 and section 24 of the Australian Constitution . Section 7 states that “the senate shall be composed of senators from each State, directly chosen by the people of the State” and section 24 states that “the House of Representatives shall be composed of members directly chosen by the people of the Commonwealth” . This indicates that members of the Commonwealth Parliament must be ‘directly chosen by the people’, which is implemented by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 . The right to vote is expressly given in …show more content…
Section 93(7) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 provides that a holder of a temporary visa or an unlawful non-citizen in not entitled to vote and Section 93(8) also provides that a person who is of unsound mind, or is serving a sentence of 3 years or longer or has been convicted of treason or treachery is not entitled to vote at any Senate or House of Representatives election. Mr X Ocker is an Australian citizen, over 18 years of age, is of sound mind, is not serving a prison sentence and has not been convicted of treason or treachery. Therefore Mr Ocker does not meet any of the criteria set out in Section 93 and so not allowing him to vote would be inconsistent with the Constitution, as it goes against the principle of universal adult