#AusPol: How do I do this voting thing?
The 2016 Australian Federal Election campaign has been going almost as long as the last season of Big Brother, and just like Channel 9, we can’t wait for it to be over. Let’s just say, the last 8 weeks haven’t exactly been House of Cards (it’s been closer to Veep, if anything); we’re bored, the media’s bored, everybody’s bored.
But this Saturday, we get to exercise a super important right that will decide the future of The Nation — while hungover!
Voting! Yay!
Here are some pointers to help you navigate the polling booth.
Check yo’self
First things first, double check where you’re enrolled to vote so you vote in the right electorate. Once you know that, you can look for your electorate in this guide and see who is standing for your seat. Check out the senate — full of all the micro-parties — here.
Get your democratic sausage
Extremely important: Suss out where the saussie sizzles are happening near you. In the Netherlands? You’re sorted. Don’t forget to ask for onion.
Not near home?
If you’re away from your electorate but still in Australia, you can visit any polling booth. If you’re O/S you’ll have to visit an embassy this weekend, or have planned ahead and pre-voted or filled out a postal vote. Voting in Australia is compulsory — it’s kind of like paying for parking as a citizen. If you don’t vote, you’ll get fined.
Who ya gonna vote for?
From the outside, it might seem like all the parties are the same. But they do have differences in policy and core ideals. You’ve got to work out which one best aligns with your values and the things that you want to see happen. Ask yourself: what do you want when it comes to gay marriage? Climate change? Healthcare and education?
And there’s not just Labor, Liberal or Greens. You can take your pick from the Sex Party to the Science Party to Family First, and many more.
If that’s all a bit overwhelming, the ABC has a Vote Compass which helps you see where you line up with the different major parties on election issues.
Voting has changed. A little bit.
When you vote, you get two pieces of paper to fill out. The small green piece of paper is for the House of Representatives — these are the pollies you see on the posters around your ‘hood who will represent you as your local Member of Parliament (MP). You number it 1–6. The big white piece of paper is for the senate — this is where you vote for the parties as a whole. You either vote above or below the line — not both. Antony Green explains how to do this in more detail fairly simply. The senate debates and passes legislation. This is the part that’s changed (explained below in the video). But don’t worry, it hasn’t changed that much.
Your vote matters!
How you use your vote and whoever you vote for — it matters. The number of young Aussies eligible to vote is enough to swing an election, so vote wisely. Our mates in Britain learned the ‘your vote matters’ lesson just last week. #IDidntThinkWedReallyLeaveOhSh- #Bregret
Don’t be a donkey
Political debate may not flick your switch but like it or not you’re in the great game now. If you can root for Dany over Cersei on Game of Thrones, you can pick a party based on their policies. And no, none of the policies include ‘tits and dragons’ (soz McShane). Making a choice is a much bigger statement than not making one.
Ps. The marathon campaign has been worth it just to see ABC political shows trying to grasp dank memes.
