Australia: Compulsory voting to remain in Queensland as donation cap lifted | The Australian

Compulsory voting will remain in place in Queensland but political parties will have to declare donations of $12,400 or more under reforms announced by the Newman Government today. Online voting could also be trialled in the 2015 campaign for voters with a disability. Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said he envisioned all voters could vote electronically within six years. “Subject to appropriate security arrangements and successful trials, computers could replace paper voting cards at polling booths and Queenslanders could even one day vote from the comfort of their own homes over the Internet,” Mr Bleijie said. “The immediate priority is providing electronically assisted voting for people with disabilities.” Other reforms will include lifting the caps on political donations and expenditure which were imposed by the former government and requiring proof of identity from voters on polling day.

Australia: Electoral Commission bids for change | Bunbury Mail

Many people who turned up to cast their vote on Saturday were surprised to find out they were one of 240,000 West Australians that were not listed on the electoral roll, prompting the WA Electoral Commission to look to other states for a solution. WA Electoral Commissioner Warwick Gately said while the commission often contacted people at what were believed to be their new addresses, the onus was for voters to respond and provide their details so they could be enrolled. Some people simply chose not to turn up, despite voting being compulsory. Mr Gately said a solution which had been picked up in New South Wales, was to enrol people automatically as a result of change of address information supplied to government departments. For this to happen, legislative change is required.

Australia: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange now a step closer to a Senate run | News.com.au

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is a step closer to contesting a Senate seat in the federal election, with an application made to put him on the electoral roll in Victoria. WikiLeaks Australian Citizens Alliance (WACA) spokeswoman Sam Castro said Assange’s application for electoral enrollment was made to the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) in Melbourne today. “It was lodged on Julian’s behalf with his signature,” Ms Castro told AAP. Ms Castro also confirmed the address nominated in Assange’s application was his mother’s house in Mentone, in the federal electorate of Isaacs.

Australia: Legal hurdles ahead for Assange political bid | Lawyers Weekly

An academic and former advisor to Julian Assange’s legal team has claimed the WikiLeaks founder will face significant eligibility and constitutional hurdles in his bid for an upper-house seat. WikiLeaks last week (30 January) confirmed that Assange would “run on a WikiLeaks party ticket” after Prime Minister Julia Gillard called an election for 14 September. Graeme Orr (pictured), a professor who specialises in the law of politics at the University of Queensland, told Lawyers Weekly that he was approached by Assange’s lawyers last year to provide advice on a potential Senate bid by the controversial activist. Orr claimed Assange’s first hurdle is being eligible to stand, which, under the Commonwealth Electoral Act, requires candidates to be registered to vote. “It is public knowledge that [Assange] is not on the electoral roll,” said Orr.

Australia: Gillard gambles on Australian election date | The Washington Post

In the marginal Labor seat of Reid, in western Sydney, Julia Gillard’s decision to trigger the start of the longest election campaign in Australian political history was greeted with surprise — and not a little cynicism. “She’s probably done it to head off another leadership challenge,” was the snap reaction of one customer in the Speedy Bean Espresso Bar as news broke Wednesday that Australia’s prime minister had wrong-footed the whole country by announcing the election date of Sept. 14. The poll had to take place by the end of the year, but the hugely unpopular Labor government did not have to give the opposition, which has led in almost every opinion poll for the best part of two years, such a head start on timing. Gillard explained it by saying that she was putting policy before election politics. “It is not right for Australians to be forced into a guessing game, and it’s not right for Australians to not face this year with certainty and stability,” Gillard said.

Australia: Many challenges ahead of Australia’s eVote | SC Magazine

Electronic voting isn’t likely to replace voting at the ballot box anytime soon, according to identity and security experts, despite progress in NSW and Victoria and renewed interest in Queensland. A discussion paper [pdf] on electoral reform released last week by the Queensland Government asked whether electronically assisted voting (conducted online or by phone) should be introduced for all voters in the state. While Queensland Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said the government must review rules and processes governing the electoral system to ensure they are “right for modern times”, experts say there is a lot standing in the way of electronic voting.

Australia: Long beta for Australia eVote | iTnews.com.au

Electronic voting isn’t likely to replace voting at the ballot box anytime soon, according to identity and security experts, despite progress in NSW and Victoria and renewed interest in Queensland. A discussion paper [pdf] on electoral reform released last week by the Queensland Government asked whether electronically assisted voting (conducted online or by phone) should be introduced for all voters in the state. While Queensland Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said the government must review rules and processes governing the electoral system to ensure they are “right for modern times”, experts say there is a lot standing in the way of electronic voting. “It’s easy to see the appeal and convenience of online voting, without being aware that the capacity for votes to be manipulated is much higher than with older or more clunky methods,” said Vanessa Teague, electronic voting researcher and honorary fellow in the department of computing and information systems at University of Melbourne. “It’s very difficult to construct valid mechanisms for proving that each person’s vote has been handled in the way they intended,” Teague said.

Australia: Abolishing compulsory voting would take Queensland back to Joh era, says Wayne Swan | The Australian

Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan have taken aim at Queensland for considering scrapping compulsory voting, with the Treasurer comparing the Newman government to the conservative Tea Party in the United States. The Queensland government released a discussion paper today on electoral reforms which questions whether the century-old practice should be dumped at a state level. It lists the pros and cons of compulsory voting and highlights other possible reforms, including allowing the return of big money donations, forcing unions to allow members a vote on political donations, and introducing truth in political advertising legislation.

Australia: Swan on the attack over compulsory voting rethink | ABC News

Deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan says the Queensland Government wants to scrap compulsory voting in order to stifle debate on public service job cuts. State Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie has released a discussion paper on electoral reforms, including making voting at state elections voluntary. Australia is one of only around 20 democracies where voting is compulsory. Mr Swan says the “absolutely stunning” proposal is aimed at stopping voters having a say on the state’s decision to cut around 14,000 public service jobs.

Australia: Electoral Commission Queensland defends handling of April council elections after Local Government lashing | The Courier-Mail

The State’s electoral commission has defended it handling of the April council elections following a lashing from local government. In a submission to Local Government Minister David Crisafulli, the Electoral Commission Queensland has hit back at claims of a cost blow-out and botched processes during the 73 council polls. Councils have argued control over their quadrennial elections should be handed back to them following the April elections they claimed were too expensive and riddled with problems, from missing or incorrect postal votes to a lack of ballot papers at booths. They said the cost of elections had risen from $6.10 per voter when councils were in charge to $10 per voter in 2012 under the ECQ. The commission, however, claims the cost is closer to $4.50 per elector.

Australia: Queensland Electoral commission under fire over polls | ninemsn

Pressure is mounting for Queensland councils to resume control of local government elections after a woeful voter turnout. The Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) will survey councils from next week, asking them to judge how the Electoral Commission of Queensland did running last weekend’s polls. It was the second time the electoral commission ran the elections, and LGAQ executive director Greg Hallam believes it should be the last. He says councils should resume control of the process, after a poor voter turn out of 60 per cent despite voting being compulsory.

Australia: Victorians to vote online next year | SC Magazine Australia

Some Victorians may get the chance to vote over the internet next year as the state electoral commission trials a new system it hopes will replace paper polling. The new system would be trialled in by-elections due to be held in 2013, before being made available to 10,000 eligible voters identified as remote or disadvantaged during wider station elections in 2014. It was expected online voting would provide an alternative to current paper systems for remote, overseas and postal voters which are deemed more at risk than those cast at the polling station, as they are handled by people outside the electoral commission.  The system — and indeed all voting platforms — was not imprevious to hacking. Rather, it was designed to meet or improve on the current level of risk experienced by remote and disadvantaged voters. Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) electronic voting manager, Craig Burton, said the system was designed to return an accuracy rating of 99.35 per cent or higher chance of detecting any fraudulent, missing or damaged votes. By comparison, he estimated online banking would have an accuracy of no more than 95 per cent.  However, internet banking was markedly different to online voting as financial transactions could be validated and possibly contested after the fact, whereas votes could no longer be accessed by the voter once cast.

Australia: Western Australian Electoral Commission to develop telephone voting system | Techworld

The WA Electoral Commission (WAEC) has commenced work on a telephone-based voting system after the funding for its internet voting system was withdrawn by the Federal Government. WAEC IT manager, Desmond Chenik, told Computerworld Australia the full internet voting system it was scheduled to develop this year, for the blind and vision impaired along with the armed forces, had been put on hold after several months of work. According to Chenik, the WAEC has put in another request with the government for the funding but even if the request is approved later this year, the internet-based system would not be ready in time for the next state election in March 2013 (the state now has fixed four year election periods).

Australia: Automatic voter registration up for vote in Australia | Sydney Morning Herald

About 1.6 million people who are eligible to vote but have not enrolled may soon find themselves signed up after the government introduced a bill yesterday to allow automatic enrolment. The bill, which will be opposed by the Coalition, will enable the Australian Electoral Commission to use ”trusted sources” such as driver’s licence databases or school-leaver records to identify eligible voters and enrol them. Once identified, an eligible voter would receive a letter from the commission asking them to confirm their address. They would then be enrolled and compelled to vote under Australia’s compulsory voting laws.

Australia: Let voters dump bad government, experts decide | Sydney Morning Herald

Voters should be given the power to force early elections in NSW with a view to dumping unpopular governments, a majority of experts has advised the Premier, Barry O’Farrell. But an early election could only be called with the support of 35 per cent of eligible voters, including at least 5 per cent from half the state’s electorates, under the model for ”recall” elections preferred by a panel commissioned by the government in June.

The panel’s report

The possibility of introducing a recall system emerged during the lead-up to this year’s election amid demands for an early poll due to the soaring unpopularity of the Labor government. Under the present system of fixed four-year terms, an early election could only have happened if the government effectively sacked itself with a vote in the Parliament.

Australia: Thousands fail to turn up for elections – more than $1.64 million in fines will be issued | Illawarra Mercury

More than $1.64 million in fines will be issued across the Illawarra after residents put in a mass no-show at this month’s council elections.
Around 23,000 people failed to vote in Wollongong, and each will be slugged with a $55 fine unless they can produce a valid excuse.

NSW Electoral Commission figures show just 83 per cent of Wollongong’s 135,468 eligible voters turned up to cast their ballot at either a polling place, at pre-poll or through a postal vote. Taking polling day figures in isolation, the turnout rate in Wollongong dropped to just 71 per cent.

An Electoral Commission spokesman said it was pleased with both the polling place and overall turnout, saying it was a “very reasonable” result for a local government election. He said the unavailability of absentee voting in local government elections could reduce overall turnout figures by 10 per cent.

Australia: Electoral Commission won’t register Bob Katter’s Australia Party | Courier Mail

The Australian Electoral Commission has refused to register Queensland Independent MP Bob Katter’s political party. In a major blow to Mr Katter’s dream of creating a new force in Australian politics, the commission ruled the Australia Party name could create confusion with other parties.

“The Australian Electoral Commission accepts the view that the proposed abbreviation is likely to be mistaken with or confused for an already registered name or abbreviation,” it said. The commission made the ruling following a complaint from a Mr David Doe.

Australia: F1Esc Dumping Australian 2011 Election Data to ThePirateBay | ZeroPaid

It would appear that ThePirateBay is one of the most popular data dumping grounds for scores of hacked data. One of the latest data dump appears to be an ongoing release where data from the Australian 2011 elections are being posted. As of this writing, 5 data dumps have been posted so far.

The AntiSec movement isn’t really tied to any one country or any one or any group of hackers. In a tweet early last month, F1Esc tweeted that he had obtained 76GB of data from the Australian 2011 elections. It wasn’t until more recently that the data was being posted on to BitTorrent site ThePirateBay.

The release is being posted in batches. Part 1 is 180MB, part 2 is 513MB, part 3 is 1.69GB, part 4 is is 37MB and the most recently released part, part 5, is 276MB.

Australia: Taxpayers hit for Hanson’s failed election challenge | Sydney Morning Herald

Pauline Hanson’s political ambitions are undimmed, despite a failed NSW election challenge that has left state taxpayers with a hefty legal bill of more than $150,000. The One Nation founder was yesterday again widely criticised for launching the case, which was based on what turned out to be a bogus email sent to her by Sydney man Sean Castle who used a false name.

But Ms Hanson said she would think about running again for the NSW parliament after she narrowly missed out on winning an upper house spot at the March 26 poll. “I have received tremendous support from the public,” said the former Queenslander who now lives in NSW.

Australia: New South Wales panel to look at recall elections | Sydney Morning Herald

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell has appointed an expert panel to examine the introduction of recall elections so voters can dump “corrupt, incompetent governments”. The move makes good on an election promise Mr O’Farrell made ahead of the March poll to voters angry at the then Labor government.

“People across this state were desperate for an early election so they could throw out an incompetent, disastrous and corrupt government that NSW had,” Mr O’Farrell told question time on Monday.

Australia: Pauline Hanson had no choice but to challenge election loss, a judge says | The Australian

Pauline Hanson had no option but to go to court to challenge the outcome of upper house voting in the NSW election after receiving information alleging a fraud had taken place, a judge has said.

In the NSW Supreme Court today, Justice Peter McClellan was deliberating on costs in the failed legal action taken by the former One Nation leader. Ms Hanson could face a huge legal bill if she incurs the costs racked up by the NSW Electoral Commission and two upper house MPs involved in the action.

Justice McClellan expressed the initial view that Ms Hanson had no other option than to present her evidence to the court after receiving an email alleging the fraud.

Australia: Taxpayers could wear Hanson court costs

Pauline Hanson is relieved that NSW taxpayers may be forced to pick up hefty legal costs stemming from her botched state election challenge. The former One Nation leader had faced the prospect of paying the likely hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees incurred by the parties called to answer her case. But the NSW…

Australia: Hanson a victim of fraud. Yet NSW Electoral Commission continues to deny access to vote data | Poll Blogger

Pauline Hanson vote challenge has been derailed with evidence lead in court that the allegation of missing votes was fraudulent.  (ABC News).  Mr. Sean Castle, the man behind the fraudulent allegations is likely to face court costs associated with Hanson challenge after he admitted to faking the allegations but will escape public prosecution in return for goving evidence..

“Mr Castle, a father of three, was granted protection from prosecution before being compelled to answer questions relating to the purported Electoral Commission email.

Australia: Hanson fraudster admits deception | smh.com.au

The man who led Pauline Hanson to believe she was robbed of votes in the NSW upper house poll has admitted in court to forging an email that led her to challenge her March election loss.

In the NSW Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sydney teacher Sean Castle was granted protection from prosecution before being compelled to answer questions relating to a purported Electoral Commission email.

Ms Hanson has said she was told of an email exchange between NSW Electoral Commission staff that alleged 1200 votes in her favour in the March 26 poll were put in a pile of blank ballots by “dodgy staff”.

Australia: It wasn’t him, it was me, admits man behind Pauline Hanson email leak | thetelegraph.com.au

A married father of three has been outed as the man who used a fake identity to leak an email to Pauline Hanson alerting her to “dodgy” vote counting by NSW Electoral Commission staff.

In a bizarre twist to the former One Nation leader’s appeal against her loss in the March state election, the case was urgently resumed yesterday as former history teacher Sean Castle, from Glendenning, in Sydney’s west, came forward to admit he had been posing as a man called Michael Rattner all along.

Michael Rattner was nominated in court as the man who leaked an email to Ms Hanson mentioning “dodgy electoral staff” wrongly placing 1200 votes cast in her favour in a blank ballot pile. But he did not appear in court on Wednesday as required, leading Justice Peter McClellan to issue a warrant to bring him in to give evidence.

Australia: Star witness in Hanson case fronts court | ABC News

A Sydney teacher and father of three who allegedly led Pauline Hanson to believe her New South Wales election result had been sabotaged has appeared in court. Sean Castle appeared in the NSW Supreme Court and apologised for not showing up when required to on Wednesday.

“My name is Sean Castle. I have represented myself as being Michael Rattner,” he said. “Firstly, I sincerely apologise to the Supreme Court for my conduct in not attending the court on June 8. “I’ve given an undertaking today to the court that I will attend any further hearings as required by the court until excused by the court.”

Earlier this week, a warrant was issued for a man identified as Michael Rattner after he failed to appear to give evidence in the case.

Australia: Three characters in search of a Hanson recount may be one person | The Australian

It’s got all the makings of a great thriller: the politician locked in a desperate legal battle with a mystery builder, a fake journalist and a former history teacher with a hidden agenda.

But for Pauline Hanson, this story is not likely to end as she had hoped. And it seems certain that it will not end well for the man who has allegedly assumed three identities in his bid to prompt a recount of upper house votes from the NSW election.

Yesterday, Ms Hanson’s lawyers and Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham publicly aired their concern that key witness Michael Rattner, supposed journalist Michael Wilson and Hanson supporter Sean Castle — all of whom are central to the former One Nation leader’s push for a recount of votes from the March election — are the same person.

Australia: Key witness for Pauline Hanson a no-show in election challenge | News.com.au

A key witness in Pauline Hanson’s legal challenge to the New South Wales election result has failed to show up, prompting the state’s Supreme Court to consider issuing a warrant for him to appear. The former One Nation leader ran as an Independent in the March 26 election but missed out on an Upper House seat by just 1306 votes.

She claims she was cheated out of 1200 votes that were put in a pile of blank ballots by “dodgy staff” at the NSW Electoral Commission. She is challenging the count, based on alleged email exchanges between the NSW Electoral Commission’s chief information officer Ian Brightwell and communications manager Richard Carroll.

However, the man who alerted her to the alleged emails, Michael Rattner, failed to appear in court today, and until he does his existence is in doubt. “I’ve either been cheated out of a seat or this is a very elaborate hoax,” Ms Hanson said today before attending the hearing before Justice Peter McClellan.

Australia: Commissioner rejects Hanson voting error claims | ABC News

The New South Wales electoral commissioner has rejected claims that two of his staff exchanged emails allegedly referring to errors in the count of votes for Upper House candidate Pauline Hanson. Ms Hanson is challenging the election result which saw her miss out on an Upper House seat.

She has launched action in the Court of Disputed Returns, after being told that staff at the commission had mistakenly put around 1,200 votes for her in a pile of blank ballots. Ms Hanson says she was tipped off by an Electoral Commission worker that her ballots were sabotaged.

Australia: Hanson election challenge begins in court | ABC Newcastle NSW

The New South Wales Electoral Commission has been ordered by a Sydney court to hand over all the information it has about the alleged sabotage of votes for Pauline Hanson.

The One Nation founder has lodged a petition in the Court of Disputed Returns after her failed bid to win a seat in the state’s Legislative Council at the March election.