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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
Electoral (Preferential Voting Reform) Amendment
Bill 2013
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the Electoral
Act 1985.
Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1Short
title
2Amendment provisions
Part 2—Amendment of Electoral
Act 1985
3Amendment of section
4—Interpretation
4Amendment of section 53—Multiple
nominations of candidates endorsed by political party
5Amendment of section
53A—Nomination of single candidate
6Amendment of section
58—Grouping of candidates in Legislative Council election
7Amendment
of section 59—Printing of Legislative Council ballot papers
8Amendment
of section 63—Voting tickets
9Amendment of section
66—Preparation of certain electoral material
10Amendment of section
76—Method of voting at elections
11Substitution of section
92
92Interpretation of
ballot papers in Legislative Council elections
12Amendment of section
94—Informal ballot papers
13Amendment of section 95—Scrutiny of
votes in Legislative Council election
14Review
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Electoral (Preferential Voting Reform)
Amendment Act 2013.
In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a
specified Act amends the Act so specified.
Part 2—Amendment
of Electoral
Act 1985
3—Amendment
of section 4—Interpretation
(1) Section 4(1)—after the definition of general
election insert:
group voting square means a square printed on a ballot paper
for a Legislative Council election in relation to the candidates included in a
group who have requested a group voting square for the purposes of the election
under section 58(2)(e);
(2) Section 4(1), definition of voting ticket—delete
the definition and substitute:
voting ticket means a written statement of a particular order
in which a voter might allocate preferences in a House of Assembly election,
being a statement for use under this Act in interpreting the votes of voters who
do not indicate an order of preference covering all candidates;
(3) Section 4(1), definition of voting ticket
square—delete the definition
4—Amendment
of section 53—Multiple nominations of candidates endorsed by political
party
Section 53(3)(b)(iii)—after "and" insert:
(in the case of a candidate for election as a member of the House of
Assembly)
5—Amendment
of section 53A—Nomination of single candidate
(1) Section 53A(3)(a)—delete paragraph (a) and
substitute:
(a) be signed by—
(i) in the case of a nomination for election as a member of the House of
Assembly—2 electors for the relevant district; or
(ii) in the case of a nomination for election as a member of the
Legislative Council—subject to subsection (3a), 50 electors for
the relevant district; and
(2) Section 53A—after subsection (3) insert:
(3a) If—
(a) 2 or more candidates in a Legislative Council election apply
under section 58 to have their names grouped together on the ballot paper;
and
(b) an elector signs a nomination paper under subsection (3)(a)(ii)
for more than 1 of the candidates,
the elector's signature is to be taken not to count for any of the
candidates for the purposes of subsection (3)(a)(ii).
6—Amendment
of section 58—Grouping of candidates in Legislative Council
election
Section 58(2)—after paragraph (d) insert:
and
(e) may contain a request for a group voting square for the group on the
ballot paper.
7—Amendment
of section 59—Printing of Legislative Council ballot
papers
Section 59(2)—delete subsection (2) and substitute:
(2) If the candidates in a group have requested under
section 58(2)(e) a group voting square, an additional square must be
printed on the ballot paper in order to provide for the casting of votes in that
square.
8—Amendment
of section 63—Voting tickets
(1) Section 63(1)—delete "or a group of candidates (but where a
candidate is a member of a group, a voting ticket must relate to the group as a
whole and not to an individual member of it)" and substitute:
for election as a member of the House of Assembly
(2) Section 63(2)(a)—delete "or candidates"
(3) Section 63(3)—delete "or candidates" wherever
occurring
(4) Section 63(3a)(a)—delete "or candidates are members" and
substitute:
is a member
(5) Section 63(3a)(b)—delete paragraph (b)
(6) Section 63(4)(b)(ii)—delete subparagraph (ii)
(7) Section 63(5)—delete subsection (5)
9—Amendment
of section 66—Preparation of certain electoral
material
(1) Section 66(1)—delete subsection (1) and
substitute:
(1) The Electoral Commissioner must have posters formed from how-to-vote
cards submitted by the candidates in the election prepared for use in polling
booths on polling day.
(2) Section 66(2)(d)—delete "in the case of how-to-vote
cards,"
(3) Section 66(2)(g)—delete "in the case of how-to-vote
cards—"
(4) Section 66(3)—delete "or booklet"
(5) Section 66(5)—delete subsection (5) and substitute:
(5) The presiding officer at each polling booth must ensure
that—
(a) in relation to a House of Assembly election, posters prepared under
subsection (1) are displayed in each voting compartment; and
(b) all other posters prepared under subsection (1) are displayed in
a prominent position in the polling booth and in accordance with any direction
issued by the Electoral Commissioner.
10—Amendment
of section 76—Method of voting at elections
Section 76(1)(a) and (b)—delete paragraphs (a) and (b) and
substitute:
(a) by placing the number "1" in the square opposite the name of the
candidate for whom he or she votes as his or her first preference and, if the
voter so desires, by placing the number "2" and consecutive numbers in the
squares opposite the names of other candidates in the order of the voter's
preference for them (but not so as to be required to indicate a preference for
all candidates); or
(b) if the ballot paper contains 1 or more group voting squares—by
placing the number "1" in the square that relates to the group of
candidates for whom the voter votes as his or her first preference and, if the
voter so desires, by placing the number "2" and consecutive numbers in the
group voting squares that relate to other groups of candidates in the order of
the voter's preference for them (but not so as to be required to indicate a
preference for all groups of candidates).
Section 92—delete the section and substitute:
92—Interpretation of ballot papers in Legislative
Council elections
(1) This section applies only in relation to a Legislative Council
election.
(2) If a voter
records a vote on a ballot paper by placing the number "1" in the group
voting square for a group of candidates, the ballot paper is taken to have
recorded on it a first preference vote for the first candidate included in the
group and subsequent preferences for all other candidates included in the group
in the order in which the names of the candidates appear on the ballot
paper.
(3) If the voter
also records a vote on the ballot paper by placing the number "2" in the
group voting square for another group, the ballot paper is taken to have
recorded on it a preference, subsequent to those referred to in
subsection (2),
for the first candidate included in that other group and subsequent preferences
for all other candidates included in that other group in the order in which the
names of the candidates appear on the ballot paper.
(4) If the voter also records a vote on the ballot paper by placing the
number "3" or subsequent numbers in the group voting squares for other
groups, the ballot paper is taken to have recorded on it preferences, subsequent
to those referred to in
subsections (2)
and
(3), for the first
candidate included in those other groups and subsequent preferences for all
other candidates included in those other groups in the order in which the names
of the candidates appear on the ballot paper.
(5) If a voter
marks a ballot paper by indicating preferences in group voting squares for
1 or more groups of candidates but also indicates preferences for
individual candidates, the following provisions apply:
(a) if the indication of preferences for individual candidates would, if
it stood alone, constitute a valid vote, that indication of preferences will be
taken to be the vote of the voter and the indication of preferences in the group
voting square or squares will be disregarded;
(b) if—
(i) the indication of preferences for individual candidates would not, if
it stood alone, constitute a valid vote; and
(ii) the indication of preferences in the group voting square or squares
would, if it stood alone, constitute a valid vote,
the indication of preferences for individual candidates will be disregarded
and the vote of the voter will be taken to have been expressed by the indication
of preferences in the group voting square or squares.
12—Amendment
of section 94—Informal ballot papers
(1) Section 94(1)(b)—delete paragraph (b) and substitute:
(b) —
(i) in the case of a ballot paper for a House of Assembly
election—it has no vote indicated on it, or it does not indicate, in the
manner required by this Act, the order of the voter's preference for all
candidates in the election; or
(ii) in the case of a ballot paper for a Legislative Council
election—it has no vote indicated on it; or
(2) Section 94(3)—after "ballot paper" (first occurring)
insert:
for a House of Assembly election
(3) Section 94—after subsection (3) insert:
(3a) If a series of numbers (starting from the number "1") appearing
on a ballot paper for a Legislative Council election is non-consecutive by
reason only of the omission of 1 or more numbers or the repetition of a
number (not being the number "1"), the ballot paper is not informal and the
votes are valid up to the point where the omission or repetition
occurs.
(4) Section 94(4)—after "ballot paper" insert:
for a House of Assembly election
(5) Section 94(4)—delete "subsection (1)(b)" and
substitute:
subsection (1)(b)(i)
(6) Section 94(4a)—delete subsection (4a)
13—Amendment
of section 95—Scrutiny of votes in Legislative Council
election
(1) Section 95(3)(b)(i)—delete "voting ticket square" and
substitute:
group voting square
(2) Section 95(3)(b)(iii)—delete "voting ticket" and
substitute:
group voting square
(3) Section 95(7)(b)—after "next available preference"
insert:
(if any)
(4) Section 95(10)—after "subsequent preferences" insert:
(if any)
(5) Section 95(11)(a)—after "next available preference"
insert:
(if any)
(6) Section 95(11)(b)(i)—after "next available preference"
insert:
(if any)
(7) Section 95(11)—after paragraph (b) insert:
(c) a ballot paper that under this subsection is, pursuant to the
exclusion of a candidate, required to be transferred to a continuing candidate
must be set aside as finally dealt with if it does not indicate a next available
preference for a continuing candidate.
(8) Section 95(15)—delete subsection (15) and substitute:
(15) If, after all the candidates who have received a number of votes
equal to or greater than the quota are elected (following the transfer of votes
under this section) there is 1 or more remaining vacancies, the following
provisions apply:
(a) where there is 1 remaining vacancy—the continuing candidate
who has the most votes will be elected despite the fact that the number of votes
of that candidate may be below the quota;
(b) where there is more than 1 remaining vacancy—the continuing
candidates who have the most votes will be elected despite the fact that the
number of votes of each candidate may be below the quota.
(9) Section 95(16)—delete "the last vacancy" and
substitute:
a vacancy referred to in subsection (15)
(10) Section 95(25)—after "voter's preference" insert:
(if any)
(11) Section 95(25)—after "subsequent preferences" insert:
(if any)
(1) As soon as practicable after the first Legislative Council election
occurring after the commencement of this Act, the Minister must cause a review
of the voting system for the Legislative Council to be conducted and a report on
the results of the review to be submitted to the Minister within 6 months
after the commencement of the review.
(2) The review must include consideration of a system of optional
preferential voting that involves what is commonly referred to as a "diminishing
quota".
(3) The Minister must, within 6 sitting days after receiving the
report, cause copies of the report to be laid before both Houses of
Parliament.