State Government
VOTE OR ELSE: NSW to automatically enrol voters
Conventional wisdom is that the vast majority of unenrolled citizens are would-be Labor or Greens political party voters.
For the most part the NSW government is populated by some pretty smart folks who form the heart of the Labor moderate cause in Australia.
The NSW Right is legendary for making and keeping their party the default party of government in New South Wales. But they’ve had a grim couple of years, losing a good Premier in Morris Iemma and replacing him with a bloke who seems massively out of his depth. Their opponents are so confident of doing well they’re having arguments about seats where an 11% swing is required. The government is nearly politically dead, although an election isn’t due until 2011 so there’s still time for them to try to turn dirty water into wine.
So it’s interesting to see the state government move to what they’re calling ‘automatic enrolment’ that put new voters on the electoral roll without their knowledge or consent.
Political insiders tell VEXNEWS it’s a trend likely to catch on with Labor governments in other states.
Drawing on data from agencies like the driver’s licence issuing Roads and Traffic Authority, the government will ensure that 18 year olds are put on the roll and that the address details are kept up to date.
Because voting is compulsory, there’ll be no place to run and hide for anyone with a car at least.
The government expect that with 91% of eligible NSW voters enrolled, the new measures will put nearly 400,000 young people on the roll.
Naturally GetUp! supports the move but more curiously so too does Barry O’Farrell, the Liberal leader in NSW.
Civil liberties groups say it’s one more incursion by the state into our lives and that all the data-sharing between government agencies could lead to significant breaches of privacy.
Liberal Senate leader Nick Minchin – slammed this week by the Liberal Left for daring to express alternate views on climate change – has previously called for the removal of penalties for non-voters, a move that would make voting voluntary.
Discussion
13 comments for “VOTE OR ELSE: NSW to automatically enrol voters”
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Can I collect these extra ballot papers too?
This is just total bullsht, no thanks Nathan, I will enrol AND vote against you.
There’s nothing you can do to stop the tsunami except hang on to that toad Joe Tripodi like driftwood.
Go BAZZA Go!
BOFail
Interesting move by Rees.
Obviously, he sees the exit poll figures which show that a large number of 18-24 year olds vote for parties of the Left (Labor, Greens, Democrats) over the parties of the Right.
But he might be too smart by half. The majority of young people who jump up at 18 to be on the roll are self-selecting political types, the sort who can’t wait to rush out and vote with their conscience. Of course we know who they’re going to vote for.
But when you force apprentice chippies and sparkies on to the rolls you open up a whole new ballgame. These are people who have better things to do with their time than enrol to vote. These are the sort of people who don’t give a continental about old growth forests or whales or greenhouse gases.
I suspect that Rees has not done his side a favour. By compelling people to go onto the roll, he’s diluting all those young luvvie voters who adore the Left’s causes and, worse, press ganging all those who don’t give a stuff about issues – except perhaps to register a vote about how crap their daily communte in to work is on NSW public transport.
Too clever by half – and I’ll love to see the exit poll figures after March 2011 for these 18-24 year olds.
Txt me any young first time female voters who would like a lift to a polling booth, would be hottt.
Could just save Labor…it’s an interesting pitch.
Is anyone else reminded of this South Park episode: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iwE1si37zw
This has been happening already, i moved temporarily for 7 months this year and got one of the change of address stickers for my license…needless to say i soon got a letter from the electoral comission threatening to fine me because i was yet to report this to them
Let’s not forget that out of all the youth it’ll be the ones without driver licences who are the most hardcore greenies our there.
great – enrol a bunch of people who don’t give a toss & organise your supporters to vote under their own name, then rock up to another polling booth & collect a ballot paper for one of these new voters. much better than voting twice at different polling booths because both votes will be valid, & just as wizard a wheeze as voting for dead people
According to Lindsay Tanner today – “Bangladesh is roughly twice the size of Tasmania, and home to about seven times the population of Australia. If Australia seeks to persuade the rest of the world that we are overpopulated, we will be rightly laughed at”.
So Tanner and his Labor mates want to turn Australia’s living standards to that of Bangladesh?
These Lefties like Tanner are traitors and scum.
According to Lindsay Tanner today – “Bangladesh is roughly twice the size of Tasmania, and home to about seven times the population of Australia. If Australia seeks to persuade the rest of the world that we are overpopulated, we will be rightly laughed at”.
So Tanner and his Labor mates want to turn Australia’s living standards to that of Bangladesh?
These Lefties like Tanner are traitors and filth.
wtf is Barry thinking, supporting this? Those NSW libs must have been oppositionally-institutionalised…
If they think this will help them, they are farking kidding themselves. They really need to change their advisors, because if they’re using the ones they have listened to over the past decade, they obviously know not what they talk about!