Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902
Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902 | |
---|---|
Parliament of Australia | |
Long title
| |
Citation | No. 8 of 1902 |
Territorial extent | Richard O'Connor (Prot) |
Amended by | |
1905, 1906, 1909, 1911 | |
Repealed by | |
Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 | |
Status: Repealed |
The Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902 (Cth) was an
The Act was repealed and replaced by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918.
History
Before the Federation of Australia in 1901, Australia consisted of six colonies, each with its own voting system and franchise. After federation, the colonies became states with the constitutional power to determine their own voting system and franchise. Women were excluded from the vote in all states except South Australia and Western Australia. In Western Australia, Indigenous Australians, Asians and Africans were excluded from voting unless they met a property qualification.[1] In Queensland, 'Aboriginal natives of Australia, India, China or the South Sea Islands' could not vote unless they met a property qualification.[2]
Section 41 of the
The Act
The Act originally had only five sections. The main provision was section three, which provided that electors in a federal election were to be naturally born British subjects over twenty-one years of age, male or female, married or single, who had lived in Australia for at least six months, and who were on the
Section 4 of the Act made a range of disqualifications from the general definition in section 3. People who had at any time been convicted of
Section 41 of the constitution provides that no adult person with a right to vote at an election for a state parliament can be prevented by any law of the Commonwealth from voting at a federal election.[6] This section was subsequently interpreted narrowly to mean that only those who were enrolled to vote in state elections before the passing of the Act had their right to vote protected under this section of the constitution.[2][7]
Section 44 of the constitution disqualifies a range of people from being elected to the
Section 5 of the Act provided that no person could vote more than once at an election.[8]
Women's suffrage
Women in the four states without female suffrage achieved the right to vote in Commonwealth elections under Section 3 of this Act.[4]
The provision on female suffrage was subject to lengthy debate. Some politicians were concerned that allowing women to vote would discriminate in favour of married men, since, in the words of Sir Edward Braddon, "the married man, happy in his family, whose wife's vote is one which he can command… will have two votes."[a] Much of the opposition to the granting of women's suffrage in the Act was grounded in the belief that, in the words of William Knox, "the main ambition of a woman's life should be to become the wife of an honourable and honest man."[b] However, there was much support for granting the vote to women, and the bill was approved by large majorities in both houses of parliament.[2]
Racial restrictions
The Barton government originally intended that Aboriginal Australians should have the right to vote in federal elections, but the proposal met strong opposition in parliament. Senator George Pearce argued that pastoralists in areas with large Indigenous populations could manipulate Indigenous people to vote for particular candidates. Most of the opponents of an Indigenous federal franchise, however, claimed that Aboriginal Australians were not fit to vote in elections or stand for parliament.[2] During the parliamentary debates over the Act, King O'Malley said, "An Aboriginal is not as intelligent as a Māori. There is no scientific evidence that he is a human being at all."[9]
The bill was amended in light of this opposition and the Act disqualified natives of Australia, Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands (except New Zealand Māori ) from voting in federal elections, unless they were entitled under section 41 of the constitution.[10] The exclusion of "coloured" immigrants from the franchise was in line with the White Australia policy which had widespread parliamentary and community support.[11] The exception for Māori was supported by parliamentarians on the grounds that Māori had the vote in New Zealand and were "highly civilised".[2]
Related laws
The Act established a First-past-the-post voting system, postal voting and absent voting at the federal level.[12][13] In 1908, a permanent electoral roll was established and in 1911, it became compulsory for all eligible voters to enroll on the electoral roll. Compulsory enrolment led to a large increase in voter turnout, even though voting was still voluntary.[14] From 1912, elections have been held on Saturdays.[15]
Legacy
In 1918, the Act was repealed and replaced by the
See also
- Maori voting rights in Australia
- Voting rights of Indigenous Australians
References
Citations
- ^ Curthoys, Ann; Mitchell, Jessie (2013). "The advent of self-government". The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume I. pp. 160–65, 168
- ^ a b c d e f g Norberry, Jennifer (28 May 2002). "Voters and the Franchise: the Federal Story". Parliament of Australia, Parliamentary Library. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ Commonwealth Franchise Act (1902). Section 3
- ^ a b "Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902 (Cth)". Documenting a democracy, Museum of Australian Democracy. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
- ^ Commonwealth Franchise Act (1902). Section 4
- ^ "Constitution of Australia". Parliament of Australia, Constitution of Australia. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
- ^ Re Pearson; Ex Parte Sipka
- ^ Commonwealth Frachise Act (1902). Section 5
- ^ "Commonwealth Franchise Bill, second reading". Australian House of Representatives Hansard. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
- ^ Documenting a Democracy, Museum of Australian Democracy, retrieved 13 October 2011
- ^ Macintyre 2020, pp. 158–159.
- ^ "Commonwealth Electoral Act 1902 (No 19 of 1902)". Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ "Research Report 3 - Analysis of Declaration Voting: Appendix 1". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
...Commonwealth Electoral Act 1902...Postal vote available to: electors more than 5 miles (8 kilometres) from the polling place for which they are enrolled... Absent vote available to electors to allow voting at any polling place within the division or within the State...
- ^ "The Fifth Parliament". Adam Carr's Electoral Archive. Archived from the original on 17 July 2005. Retrieved 14 July 2005.
- ^ "Australia's major electoral developments Timeline: 1900 - Present". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
- ^ "Commonwealth Franchise Bill, second reading". Australian House of Representatives Hansard. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
Notes
Bibliography
- Macintyre, Stuart (2020). A concise history of Australia (Fifth ed.). Port Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. pp. 158–59. ISBN 9781108728485.
External links
- "Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902". National Archives of Australia: Documenting a Democracy. Archived from the original on 16 July 2005. Retrieved 14 July 2005.
- "A Matter of Public Importance: Votes for Women". Parliament of Australia Library. Archived from the original on 18 July 2005. Retrieved 14 July 2005.
- "Australian Electoral History Timeline: 1900–present". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 July 2005.