| Harry Jenkins ( M) |
| Ian Harris ( M) |
Parliament House
CANBERRA, A.C.T. 2600
Tel.: (612) 6277 21 58
Fax: (612) 6277 20 00
E-mail: Andrew.Templeton.Reps@aph.gov.au
PRO@aph.gov.au
| http://www.aph.gov.au/ |
1956
Under this system, members of the House - one for each electoral division - are elected by an absolute majority of the votes cast. Voters are required to express a preference among all the candidates contesting the same seat. A candidate is elected if he/she gains an absolute majority or 50% + 1 vote. If none of the candidates in a division obtains an absolute majority of the first preference votes, a second round of counting is held. At this point, the candidate with the least number of votes is eliminated and the votes which he/she obtained in the first round are redistributed among the remaining candidates on the basis of the electors' second choices. This procedure is repeated until such time as one of the candidates obtains an absolute majority.
Vacancies arising between general elections are filled through by-elections.
Voting is compulsory, unwarranted abstention punishable by fine.
- Australian citizen or British subject registered on the Commonwealth Electoral Roll on 25 January 1984
- disqualifications: holders of temporary entry permits, prohibited immigrants, conviction for treason, insanity, persons serving a sentence of three years or more
- age: 18 years
- Australian citizenship
- ineligibility: undischarged bankruptcy, conviction for treason, allegiance to a foreign State, conviction for an offence punishable by imprisonment of one year or more, conviction for bribery within preceding two years
- holders of an office of profit or pension payable out of public funds (except Ministers and members of the armed forces)
- officers of the Electoral Commission
- unless excepted, person with any financial interest in an agreement with the Government
- payment of A$ 350, reimbursed to any candidate obtaining at least 4% of first preference votes
Also available:
Archive of past election results for this chamber
Prime Minister Howard (Liberal Party) was seeking a fifth consecutive term in office. In the previous elections held on 9 October 2004, his party had won 74 seats in the House of Representatives, promising to maintain low interest rates for further economic prosperity. He formed a coalition government comprising the Liberal Party, the National's (12 seats) and the Country Liberal Party (one seat).
His main rival was Mr. Kevin Rudd of the centre-left Australian Labor Party (ALP). A former diplomat, Mr. Rudd was elected as party leader on 4 December 2006. The ALP, which had won 60 seats in 2004, was seeking a return to power after 11 years in the opposition.
In all, 1,421 candidates ran for the elections. 13 candidates vied for the seat in the Bennelong electorate in Sydney held by Prime Minister Howard.
The 2007 elections saw once again a duel between the Liberal Party and the ALP.
Prime Minister Howard urged voters to support his party for further economic growth. He argued that an ALP government would wreck the economy. The 68-year old leader said that if his party won the elections, he would hand over leadership mid-term to the treasurer, Mr. Peter Costello. The 50-year old Mr. Rudd, who campaigned under the slogan of "new leadership", promised to change labour laws, arguing that many workers had not benefited from economic growth.
The Liberal leader insisted that the country should maintain its 1,500 troops in Iraq and 1,000 in Afghanistan as long as needed, and maintain a close alliance with the U.S. The ALP leader argued that 550 combat troops should be withdrawn from Iraq by mid-2008, while more troops should be sent to Afghanistan. He also pledged to shut down Australia's offshore refugee processing and detention centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea.
Prime Minister Howard continued to oppose the Kyoto Protocol on climate change and its carbon emission targets, arguing they would damage the country's economy. Mr. Rudd promised to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and pledged to cut carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050. In 2007, Australia suffered its worst drought in 100 years. Global warming was reportedly a major concern for many citizens.
During the election campaign, the Liberal Party was damaged by two incidents. On 7 November, the Reserve Bank raised interest rates to 6.75 per cent, the sixth increase since the 2004 elections, when Prime Minister Howard had promised to keep the interest rate low. Two days before the polling day, further controversy was caused by leaflets circulated in Sydney by volunteers and members of the Liberal Party, which linked the ALP to Muslim extremists. The Prime Minister condemned the act and emphasized he had not authorized the leaflets.
The final results gave a major victory to the ALP, which won 83 seats in the House of Representatives, while the Liberal Party took 55.
A well-known former television journalist, Ms. Maxine McKew (ALP) narrowly defeated Prime Minister Howard, who had held his Bennelong seat since 1974. He became the first incumbent prime minister to be voted out since Mr. Stanley Bruce in 1929.
In the Senate elections, the ALP won 18 seats, controlling 32 seats in all. The Liberal Party won 15 seats and also holds 32 seats in all. Newly-elected Senators are due to take up their posts on 1 July 2008. Until then the Liberal Party remains the largest party and retains its one seat majority in the Senate.
On 3 December, Mr. Rudd was officially sworn in as Prime Minister, alongside Deputy Prime Minister Ms. Julia Gillard, who became the first woman to hold the post. Mr. Rudd's first act was to sign Australia's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol.
| Round no 1 (24 November 2007): Election results | ||||
| Number of registered electors | 13'646'539 | |||
| Voters | 12'930'814 (94.76%) | |||
| Blank or invalid ballot papers | ||||
| Valid votes | ||||
| Round no 1: Distribution of votes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political Group | Candidates | Votes | % of votes | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Labor Party (ALP) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Liberal Party | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National Party | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Independents | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Round no 1: Distribution of seats | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political Group | Total of seats | Gain/Loss | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Labor Party (ALP) | 83 | 23 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Liberal Party | 55 | -19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National Party | 10 | -2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Independents | 2 | -1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- http://vtr.aec.gov.au/
- IPU Group (29.01.2008)
- House of Representatives (25.02.2008)
- reasons for interruption of the term: death, dissolution of the House, loss of mandate as Representative, removal from office by a vote of the House, resignation
- election is held at the beginning of the first sitting of the newly elected House
- after the return of the election writs has been announced in the House and after Members have been sworn in
- the Clerk calls orally for nominations of candidates. Each motion must be seconded and each candidate must inform the House whether he/she accepts the nomination
- the former Speaker, if re-elected as a Member, may seek re-election as Speaker. The practice over years when the governing party has been returned to office following a general election has been to renominate as Speaker the former Speaker
- a candidate must obtain the majority of the votes of the Members present. Each Member of the House writes the name of the candidate he/she prefers on the ballot
- if there are 2 candidates, only one round of voting is held. If there are more than 2 candidates and if no candidate obtains the majority at the first round, additional rounds are held. No new candidates are admitted between rounds. If no candidate obtains the majority, the candidate with the smallest number of votes is excluded. The process is repeated until one candidate obtains the majority
- if there is only one candidate nominated, the Clerk immediately declares that Member elected - if there are more candidates, the Clerk counts the votes
- the Clerk announces the results without any delay
- the result cannot be challenged
- the most senior presiding officer (by date of appointment) has precedence over the presiding officer of the other House. If both are elected on the same date, the President of the Senate has precedence.
- for joint sittings of the Houses, Presidents agree on rules for the conduct of the sittings
- represents the House in its relations with other persons outside the House and organisations
- is ex officio member of the Historic Memorials Committee
- may represent the House in international bodies
- is ex officio President of the House Committee and the Library Committee of the HR, of the joint Committee on the Broadcasting of the Parliamentary Proceedings - together with the President of the Senate, is joint President of the Commonwealth of Australia Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and of the Australian Inter-Parliamentary Group of the IPU
- in the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker or the Second Deputy Speaker can assume his/her role and functions as Acting Speaker. If all three are absent, one of the Members present is elected to act as Speaker or the sitting is adjourned.
- electorate allowance based on the size of the constituency (C) (A$ 24,558/year if C >2000 Square Kilometres (SK) - A$ 29,202 if 2000 SK< C< 5000 SK - A$ 35,611/year if C> 5000 SK
- salary of office of A$ 55,277/year
- three support staff (as a Member of Parliament) plus a Senior Adviser, 2 Advisers, 2 Assistant Advisers, 2 Personal Secretaries
- access to postal and telephone service in connection with his duties
- official car
- examines the admissibility of bills and amendments
- may refer texts to a committee for study
- interprets and enforces Standing Orders
- makes announcements concerning the House
- takes disciplinary measures in the event of disturbance, and lifts such measures
- gives and withdraws permission to speak
- may establish the order in which amendments are taken up
- calls for a vote, verifies the voting procedure
- checks the quorum at the request of a Member of the House
- interprets the rules or other regulations governing the life of the House, if necessary by referring to precedents
- may give the floor outside the agenda, provided it does not develop into debates
- can create, abolish, and reclassify all positions
- recommends candidates for the office of Clerk
- organises the services of Parliament
- is responsible for relations with foreign Parliaments, together with the President of the Senate
- is responsible for safety and, in this capacity, can call the police in the event of disturbance in the Chamber
- provides guidelines for the interpretation or completion of the text under discussion in relation to procedural handling
- takes part in voting only if numbers of votes are equal
- proposes exceptionally bills or amendments
- intervenes in the parliamentary oversight procedure
· Procedure
· Procedure (S. 37 of the Constitution)
· Authority competent to accept the resignation: the Speaker or the Governor-General
- Disqualification for membership by the House of Representatives (S. 47 of the Constitution)
(b) Loss of mandate by judicial decision:
- Election petitions
(c) Loss of mandate for not attending sessions of Parliament (S. 38 of the Constitution)
(d) Loss of mandate for incapabilities (S. 43 to 45 of the Constitution)
1. The Speaker
2. Other MPs in accordance with position and seniority
· Outside Parliament: the official order of precedence ranks the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 5th position (with the President of the Senate; precedence has who is appointed first, or, if they are appointed at the same time, the President of the Senate) and the other MPs in the 20th position.
· Basic salary: $ AUS 106,770 per annum (as of 1 July 2004)
+ Electorate Allowance: depending on the size of the electorate
+ Additional allowances for office holders
· No exemption from tax for basic salary and additional allowances. Electorate Allowances are tax exempt where there is evidence of appropriate expenditure.
· Pension scheme
· Other facilities:
(a) Secretariat
(b) Assistants
(c) Use of cars
(d) Security guards
(e) Postal and telephone services
(f) Travel and transport
· Parliamentary non-accountability is limited to words spoken or written by MPs and votes cast within Parliament.
· Derogations: offences against a House (breach of the privileges or immunities, or contempt of a House, of the Members or committees; S. 4 and 6 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1987)/use of Queen's, Governor-General's or Governor's name, offensive words, personal reflections (SO 74 to 76 of the Standing and Sessional Orders) (for both, see Discipline)/sub judice convention
· Non-accountability is in effect during proceedings of Parliament and offers, after the expiry of the mandate, protection against prosecution for opinions expressed during proceedings of Parliament.
· It applies only to civil proceedings, covers all offences, but protects MPs only from arrest and imprisonment. It also includes the exemption from compulsory attendance in a court or tribunal, and the exemption from service as a juror.
· No derogations are foreseen.
· Parliamentary inviolability does prevent MPs from being called as witnesses before a judge or tribunal during House or committee meetings and 5 days before and 5 days after those meetings.
· Protection is provided from 5 days before the House or committee is meeting until 5 days after the meeting (S. 14 of the Parliamen-tary Privileges Act 1987). Since parliamentary inviolability does not cover judicial proceedings in general, it does not cover judicial proceedings instituted against MPs before their election. However, those proceedings would proceed subject to the immunities specified above.
· Parliamentary immunity (inviolability) cannot be lifted.
· Parliament cannot subject the prosecution and/or detention to certain conditions. However, by convention the House must be informed of the arrest of a Member on criminal charges.
· Parliament cannot suspend the prosecution and/or detention of one of its members.
· In the event of preventive custody or imprisonment, the MPs concerned cannot be authorised to attend sittings of Parliament.
· It is provided by the Department of the House of Representatives. Assistance to their members is provided by political parties.
· Handbooks of parliamentary procedure:
- House of Representatives Practice (3rd edition)
· Penalties foreseen in case of failure to fulfil this obligation: forfeiture of mandate
· Disciplinary measures foreseen:
- Call to order
- Naming and suspension (SO 303, 304, 305, and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to withdraw for one hour, eventually with naming and suspension (SO 304A, 305, and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to withdraw immediately, with naming and suspension (SO 306 and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to attend (SO 309 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Arrest into the custody of the Serjeant-at-Arms (SO 311 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Suspension of the sitting or adjournment of the House (SO 308 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
· Specific cases:
- Offences against a House (breach of the privileges or immunities, or contempt of a House, of the Members or committees; S. 4 and 6 of the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1987): fine or imprisonment
- Use of Queen's, Governor-General's or Governor's name; offensive words; personal reflections (SO 74 to 76 of the Standing and Sessional Orders): intervention of the Speaker
· Competent body to judge such cases/to apply penalties:
- Call to order/naming/order to withdraw for one hour/order to withdraw immediately/order to attend/suspension of the sitting or adjournment of the House/use of Queen's, Governor-General's or Governor's name; offensive words; personal reflections: the Speaker
- Arrest into the custody of the Serjeant-at-Arms : the Speaker, the House
- Suspension/offences against a House: the House
· Procedure:
- Call to order
- Naming and suspension (SO 303, 304, 305, and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to withdraw for one hour, eventually with naming and suspension (SO 304A, 305, and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to withdraw immediately, with naming and suspension (SO 304, 305, 306 and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Order to attend (SO 309 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Arrest into the custody of the Serjeant-at-Arms (SO 311 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Suspension of the sitting or adjournment of the House (SO 308 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
- Offences against a House (S. 7 of the Parliamentary Privilege Act 1987)
- Use of Queen's, Governor-General's or Governor's name; offensive words; personal reflections (SO 77 to 78, 303, 304, 305, and 307 of the Standing and Sessional Orders)
· Penalties foreseen for violation of the code of conduct:
- Loss of mandate (S. 44 (iv.) and (v.), and S. 45 (iii.) of the Constitution; office of profit under the Crown/pecuniary interests in agreements with the Public Service of the Commonwealth/fees for services rendered)
- Imprisonment for two years and loss of mandate (Commonwealth Crimes Act in relation with S. 44 (ii.) of the Constitution/S. 326 and 327 of the Electoral Act in relation with S. 44 (ii.) of the Constitution)
· Competent body to judge such cases/to impose penalties:
- Imprisonment: competent court
- Loss of mandate: no body necessary; in controversial cases the House or the Court of Disputed Returns
· Procedure:
- Loss of mandate (S. 44 (iv.) and (v.), and S. 45 (iii.) of the Constitution)
- Imprisonment for two years and loss of mandate (Commonwealth Crimes Act in relation with S. 44 (ii.) of the Constitution)
- Imprisonment for two years and loss of mandate (S. 326 and 327 of the Electoral Act in relation with S. 44 (ii.) of the Constitution)
Also available:
Archive of past election results for this chamber
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Last Elections | Presidency of the Parliament | Parliamentary Mandate | Parliamentary Oversight
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