Elections for half of the Senate will be held this year. Twelve senators will be elected from each state and two from each of the territories.
White ballot papers must be used on election day for the Senate. The box at the top of the line can be used to vote for the party. If you want to vote for the preferred candidate instead of the party, you have to fill the box below the line.
On the third Saturday in May, Australians will choose six senators to represent each state and territory of their choice.
Elections will be held for half of the Senate this year, through which qualified candidates will be selected to present arguments, review and vote on future new legislation.
The Australian Senate is also known as the House of Review or the State’s House.
Twelve senators are elected from each state. The Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory each elect two senators.
Evan Eking Smith of the Australian Electoral Commission explained the steps of this election.
He says voters are required to cast their ballots on the white ballot paper set for the Senate by writing “one” next to the party of their first choice. In this way, one can vote for six preferred political parties by writing numbers from ‘one’ to ‘six’.
Voters can cast their ballots at the top of the middle line on the ballot paper. And if you want to vote for a particular candidate, you have to vote in at least 12 cells below the line.
Ian Tulloch, an assistant research fellow at the University of La Trobe, called this year’s election a “half-Senate election.”
Senators from all states are usually elected for a six-year term, but at the same time, their half-term is three years.
The term of all senators in the territories is three years.
Voters must be aware that the ballots cast on the ballot paper are added to the political party sector, not to any candidate.
And it takes a few weeks to know the results of the Senate election because it takes a long time to complete the counting of votes, and only then is the full list of senators announced.
Ian Tulloch said the Senate plays a very important role in politics.
