How did it get to this?
In 1973 and 1984, two Federal Labor Governments made changes that, to this day, allow people to manipulate the results of elections.
In 1973 the Whitlam Government changed the name of the Commonwealth Electoral Office into the Australian Electoral Office. In 1984 the Hawke Government renamed it the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), consisting of a three person team with a sizeable bureaucracy to oversee Australian Federal Elections. The AEC became an Independent Statutory Authority and was no longer responsible to Parliament.
In 1983, Senators Robert Ray and Graham Richardson were appointed to be the Legal & Constitutional Committee. They worked out the tactics for introducing legislation via a joint Party Electoral Reform Committee, which included Senator John Carrick and MP Ralph Hunt that changed a number of key aspects of the Australian electoral system.
The Bills were introduced through Parliament in November 1983 and June 1984.
The result of these Bills was that:
In 1973 the Whitlam Government changed the name of the Commonwealth Electoral Office into the Australian Electoral Office. In 1984 the Hawke Government renamed it the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), consisting of a three person team with a sizeable bureaucracy to oversee Australian Federal Elections. The AEC became an Independent Statutory Authority and was no longer responsible to Parliament.
In 1983, Senators Robert Ray and Graham Richardson were appointed to be the Legal & Constitutional Committee. They worked out the tactics for introducing legislation via a joint Party Electoral Reform Committee, which included Senator John Carrick and MP Ralph Hunt that changed a number of key aspects of the Australian electoral system.
The Bills were introduced through Parliament in November 1983 and June 1984.
The result of these Bills was that:
- Sub-divisional voting was eliminated. It was made “easier” to vote. Instead of your name only being on the roll at the polling place nearest to your place of residence, it was on every roll at every polling place in your electorate. This meant that if you multiple voted by voting at more than your local polling place, there would be less chance of someone who knew you seeing you vote more than once. This facilitated multiple voting and voting in someone else's name. Voting twice under the same name will result in a letter from the AEC, stating that 'someone has been voting in your name', vote fraud very hard to prove and both votes still counted.
- Roll scrutiny was weakened. Roll integrity was made even more difficult due to the suppression of a Habitation review and by switching to continuous electoral roll updates.
- Keeping election rolls open for 7 days after an election has been called. During this period the AEC is inundated with enrolment applications and cannot check all of them before election day, allowing fraud to occur.
- Allowing enrolment with no security or ID checks (changed in April 2007 for enrolment and provisional voting but waiver possible by Electoral Commission using regulations "to facilitate elections"). It was now possible to enrol at any Post Office by filling out a form (or any number of forms for multiple names) as long as you could remember the address details when voting. The requirement for ID at time of enrolment was only introduced through April 2007 legislation and is now under threat of rescission by the Labor Government or Electoral Commissioner.
- Questioning results and seeking justice was made easier until you realised that there was a statute of limitations (40 days) on the time to gather and present evidence of malfeasance and there were costs which the complainant had to bear which effectively prevented complaining candidates from being able to afford the cost of the complaint so losing that election – e.g. Alasdair Webster - Macquarie 1993, Joan Chambers – Ballarat 1988.
- The cost of investigating complaints was transferred to the complainant and a 40 day time limit to source evidence was enforced. The burden of proof was escalated- courts did not have the power to check the accuracy of electoral rolls
- A Statute of Limitations was introduced, making it hard for police to pursue investigations and prosecute. This led to cases being dropped.
Why the changes?
The official reason these changes were made was to increase the franchise of Indigenous Australians and young people. But the actual intent was to introduce specific changes to the Australian electoral system that would advantage the Australian Labor Party.
Proof of this comes from the memoirs of these change's architect, Senator Graham Richardson
'So that Labor could embrace power as a right and make the task of anyone trying to take it from us as difficult as we could' - ‘Whatever It Takes’, G. Richardson, page 144
These legislation changes meant that vote fraud and criminal misconduct become:
The impact has been that the will of honest people at polling booths has been trumped by the will of corrupt people.
Where we are now
The legislation changes of 1983 and 1984 have been protected by successive Labor governments and Electoral Commission people. A Legislation change (introduced by Howard's Coalition government in 2007), requiring provisional voters to produce ID when voting, was quickly denounced by a newly installed Labor government with Labor MP Michael Danby being quoted as saying
“…We will be reversing these laws before the next election.” - Sunday Age- Feb 10 2008, and here.
Another Labor senior figure, Senator John Faulkner has been quoted as saying"We don't have elections rorted in this country. Our system is outstanding. It is the best electoral system in the world and it is free of fraud. " - Channel 9 Sunday program 'Election Rorts'- transcript available here
Until we have serious and lasting legislation to minimise the opportunities for voter fraud, election rorting will continue.
The official reason these changes were made was to increase the franchise of Indigenous Australians and young people. But the actual intent was to introduce specific changes to the Australian electoral system that would advantage the Australian Labor Party.
Proof of this comes from the memoirs of these change's architect, Senator Graham Richardson
'So that Labor could embrace power as a right and make the task of anyone trying to take it from us as difficult as we could' - ‘Whatever It Takes’, G. Richardson, page 144
These legislation changes meant that vote fraud and criminal misconduct become:
- Easier to perpetrate
- Harder to detect
- Virtually impossible to challenge successfully when discovered
The impact has been that the will of honest people at polling booths has been trumped by the will of corrupt people.
Where we are now
The legislation changes of 1983 and 1984 have been protected by successive Labor governments and Electoral Commission people. A Legislation change (introduced by Howard's Coalition government in 2007), requiring provisional voters to produce ID when voting, was quickly denounced by a newly installed Labor government with Labor MP Michael Danby being quoted as saying
“…We will be reversing these laws before the next election.” - Sunday Age- Feb 10 2008, and here.
Another Labor senior figure, Senator John Faulkner has been quoted as saying"We don't have elections rorted in this country. Our system is outstanding. It is the best electoral system in the world and it is free of fraud. " - Channel 9 Sunday program 'Election Rorts'- transcript available here
Until we have serious and lasting legislation to minimise the opportunities for voter fraud, election rorting will continue.