Out of 38,000 people fined for non-voting in NT local government elections just 3 per cent have paid
There have been 38,000 people issued with infringement notices for not voting in the NT local government elections. (ABC News: Xavier La Canna)
In Short:
Only 3 per cent of voters fined for failing to cast a ballot in last year’s Northern Territory local government elections have paid the penalty.
The system is unfair to Aboriginal voters, says an Indigenous activist.
What's Next?
The Northern Territiory Electoral Commission will call for increased fines.
Only 3 per cent of voters fined for failing to cast a ballot in last year’s Northern Territory local government elections have paid the penalty, as debate grows over whether the system is working — or working fairly.
Out of 38,000 people issued with infringement notices for not voting, just over 1,300 have paid the fine so far.
Earlier this week, Northern Territory Electoral Commissioner Kirsten Kelly told ABC Radio Darwin Breakfast that the cost of issuing the initial infringement notices was about $30,000 — not including staff time.
"There is a second part of the process where a second notice is sent out to those who haven't responded to the first, and those who haven't responded to the first still have some time," Ms Kelly said.
"There is 28 days to consider their options and respond."
Failure to respond could ultimately lead to prosecution.
"There are prosecution options available, and we will certainly look at that at the end of the process," she said.
According to the Electoral Commission, only 15 people have contacted officials to say they had voted but received an infringement notice in error.
Ms Kelly said voters who had a valid reason for not casting a ballot may not have to pay.
"If they respond with a reason, it will be considered by the commission," she said.
The penalty for failing to vote in the NT is currently $25. The commissioner believes that amount should be reviewed.
"The NT Electoral Commission for a number of years has recommended in its election reports that the fines be reviewed and increased,"Kirsten Kelly said.
But not everyone agrees.
"Our old people stood for hours to vote," says Michael Liddle, an Alyawarre man and activist from Alice Springs.
"The Aboriginal vote isn't seen as important and it is getting worse," he says.
Dani Linder, a Bundjalung and Kungarakany woman and senior lecturer in Law at the University of Queensland, says the issue of non-voting cannot be separated from long-standing structural barriers.
"There are difficulties that have been documented about non-voting," Dr Linder said.
"Not enough funding for Indigenous communities, the voting stations are not adequately manned for enough time."
She said distance and language barriers remain major obstacles in remote parts of the Territory.
"People have to travel half a day, and when they get there are not enough staff members who have the linguistic skills to deal with people who do not speak English as their first language," she said.
Some countries have experimented with digital voting systems — including Brazil — but Dr Linder warned that technology alone is not a silver bullet.
"This could be a way forward, but it would have to be a holistic style approach. We need to ensure that people have wi-fi to make that work," Dr Linder said.
"When you try to fix one component without addressing others, you often make matters worse."
She argues any reform must be grounded in evidence — and backed by political commitment.
"You need an evidence-based approach. And you need political will. That has not happened especially in the NT," Dr Linder said.
With tens of thousands yet to respond to their notices, the coming weeks will determine whether the Territory sees an increase in payments — or a wave of prosecutions — and whether the debate over compulsory voting shifts from compliance to access.