BALLOT PAPER
CANDIDATE 1
CANDIDATE 2
CANDIDATE 3
CANDIDATE 4
CANDIDATE 5
Election of a Member of the Legislative Assembly of
Queensland for the Electoral District of
Place the number one ("1") in the square opposite the
candidate of your choice.
Indicate your preference for
all
the other candidates by
numbering the other squares in your preferred order.
Remember to number every box to ensure
your vote counts
Instructions
Why is voting compulsory
in Australia?
information sheet
1
Parliament of Australia. Department of Parliamentary Services. 2005. Compulsory voting in Australian national elections p. 5 - https://
parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/library/prspub/06SH6/upload_binary/06sh63.pdf;leType=application%2Fpdf#search=%22library/
prspub/06SH6%22 – accessed 18 March 2021
2
International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), https://www.idea.int/data-tools/data/voter-turnout/compulsory-
voting, accessed 17 March 2021
3
UK Parliament, https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/electionsvoting/chartists/contemporarycontext/
electionturnout/, accessed 17 March 2021
4
Pew Research Center, https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/01/28/turnout-soared-in-2020-as-nearly-two-thirds-of-eligible-u-s-
voters-cast-ballots-for-president/, accessed 17 March 2021
Compulsory voting was rst used in Australia at
the 1915 Queensland state election. Following
this, Queenslanders turned out to state and
federal elections in higher numbers than the
national average.
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This increased voter turnout in Queensland
encouraged changes at the federal level and
in 1924, the Parliament of Australia amended
the Electoral Act to make voting compulsory at
federal elections.
Today, voting in Australia is compulsory at
state and federal levels of government. It
is compulsory at local government level in
Queensland, however not all states compel
electors to vote in local government elections.
Federal, state and territory electoral commissions
continually monitor and improve procedures and
practices to ensure the secrecy and integrity of
the voting process.
Is compulsory voting better
than voluntary voting?
It is argued compulsory voting ensures elected
governments are viewed as legitimate, with
nearly all electors having their say through voting.
Whatever the outcome, the elected government
is seen as the majority’s choice: each vote is
equal, every voice is equal.
Where voting is not compulsory:
• candidates and parties focus their policies
on the minority of people who will vote,
however their policies still eect the whole
population – a minority is deciding for the
majority, and
• a lot of time, money, and eort is spent by
campaigners just to get people to enrol
and vote.
Only 27 countries out of 195 worldwide (13.8%)
have compulsory voting.
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To learn more about the importance of voting,
go to the information sheet: Why is voting
important?
Fast facts on voter turnout
According to the Australian Electoral
Commission, voter turnout at the 2019 federal
election was nearly 92 per cent.
The United Kingdom (UK) has voluntary voting.
The lowest turnout in a UK general election was
57.2% in 1918. In 2015, the turnout was 66.1%
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of eligible electors.
The United States of America (USA) also has
voluntary voting. At the 2020 USA Presidential
election, the turnout was 66.2% of eligible
electors
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, and was reported as a ‘record turnout’.