A referendum on whether to have four-year fixed parliamentary terms in Queensland has officially passed, with the state’s Electoral Commission (ECQ) declaring the vote. Of the 80 per cent of ballots counted, 51 per cent of voters favoured the change compared to 46 per cent who opposed it. The informal vote for the March 19 poll was 3 per cent. Legislation will be introduced to Queensland Parliament that will change the current three-year variable terms to a fixed date, the last Saturday of October, every four years.
The four-year terms will not apply until after the next state election.
“The result showed that there was broad support across the majority of state electoral districts for the move from three-year flexible to fixed four-year parliamentary terms,” the ECQ said in a statement.
Full Article: Queensland referendum: Vote on four-year parliamentary terms passes – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation).