YACSA's Federal Election Day Guide
Where do you vote? What do you bring? How do you fill in the ballot paper? What's a democracy sausage? We've got the answers.
Where do you vote? What do you bring? How do you fill in the ballot paper? What's a democracy sausage? We've got the answers.
Our guide to federal ELECTION DAY.
From the moment you arrive, until the moment you leave, here's what to expect and what to do.
Preparation
Firstly - have you enrolled to vote? Click here to make sure you're enrolled to vote.
WHERE CAN I VOTE?
You can vote at any 'polling booth'.
The easiest and quickest way to vote is to go to a polling booth within the electorate you are voting in.
Find the closest polling centres to you here.
If you are not going to be in your electorate, going to be overseas, or if you won't be able to get to a polling booth, click here to find out about postal voting.
WHAT DO I BRING?
All you need to bring is yourself!
How to Vote' forms
The moment you arrive, there will be a bunch of people handing you 'how to vote cards'.
These are recommendations from the parties on how they would like you to vote.
They are NOT mandatory.
Feel free to:
refuse to take them
use them
recycle them
fold them into unique paper airplanes.
But you don't HAVE to do anything with them.
Queuing
You will enter a queue. The queue might be very long. Brace yourself.
Bonus YACSA tip:
We recommend sharing Smashed Avocado stories with people around you to pass the time. But we’re also on Tik Tok if that’s more your speed.
Ticking your name off
When you reach the front of the line you will walk up to the election official at the desk.
They will find you on the electoral roll and cross off your name, give you your ballot papers, read you the instructions on how to fill them out and send you on your way to a small, cardboard voting booth.
Bonus YACSA tip:
There's thousands of people in their book. It might take them a while to find your name. They've had a long day. Be nice to the election officials.
Actually voting
For now, here are the basics:
For the SMALL ballot paper:
Put a '1' in the box next to your favourite candidate.
Put a '2' next to your second choice.
Keep going down until EVERY BOX IS NUMBERED.
Note: you can also go reverse, and put the lowest number possible for your least favourite candidate and work your way up.
You can find a practice House of Representatives ballot here.
For the LARGE ballot paper:
Same as above, in that you put a '1' next to your favourite candidate, a '2' for your second favourite, and so on.
If you vote 'below the line', you need to mark at least 12 boxes.
If you vote 'above the line', you need to number at least six boxes from 1 to 6.
However, with both, you are free to mark as many more as you like.
You can find a practice Senate ballot here.
If you make a mistake, you can always ask the official for a new sheet.
When you're done, take your ballot papers and put them in the ballot box.
Bonus YACSA tip:
Skip the graffiti on your ballot papers, while you’re allowed to it ultimately just makes the election officials job harder when they’re counting votes. There are waaaaaay better ways to express your political views or frustrations - like becoming a YACSA young member! (click here to sign up!)
Reward yourself
Well done! You have just democracy-ed. (Yes, we made that word up).
It's time to celebrate.
We recommend grabbing a democracy sausage before you leave (or an alternative that suits your dietary needs).
The democracy sausage is a time honoured tradition unique to Australian democracy, where the local sausage sizzle is a vital part of the voting experience - and it helps raise money for the local school/community group.
Who are the parties and independents running in the federal election?
Find out which parties and independents you can vote for in the 2022 Federal Election
At this stage in the election period you’ve probably seen campaign information and signs from the Liberal, Labor, Greens and United Australia parties - but they’re by no means your only options on your ballot.
You may not see all of these parties on your House of Representatives (Lower House) ballot, as minor parties don’t usually have a candidate in every electorate but you’ll see more on your Senate (Upper House) ballot.
Here’s each party, group and independent running in the senate for SA, linked to their available candidate, campaign and policy info (where possible):
C. Liberal Party of Australia (SA Division)
D. Australian Labor Party (South Australian Branch)
E. Bob Day & Pat Amadio
G. National Party of Australia (SA) Inc
H. Sustainable Australia Party – Stop Overdevelopment / Corruption
I. The Local Party of Australia
J. Australian Federation Party
L. Drew Pavlou Democratic Alliance
M. Harmeet Kaur & Rajesh Kumar
N. FUSION: Science, Pirate, Secular, Climate, Emergency
O. Nick Xenophon & Stirling Griff
Q. Informed Medical Options Party
S. Pauline Hanson's One Nation
T. Legalise Cannabis South Australia Party
UNGROUPED: Michael Hopper (Independent)
Parties and independents running only in the lower house in SA:
(You will only see these candidates if they’re running in your electorate)
Barker:
Vince Pannell
Maddy Fry
Boothby:
Paul Busuttil
Jo Dyer
Grey:
Kingston:
Rob De Jonge
Mayo:
Rebekha Sharkie (Centre Alliance)
Sturt:
Who are the candidates in my electorate?
Find your electorate and the candidates on your ballot
The 2022 Federal Election is getting closer and closer, so it’s time to check which electorate you’re in and find out who will be on your ballot.
Enter your suburb or post code here on the Australian Electoral Commission’s (AEC) website to find your electorate’s candidates in the order they will be listed on your House of Representatives (lower house) ballot on polling day.
For example, the YACSA office address is 4/182 Victoria Square, Adelaide which puts us in the electoral district of Adelaide. Voters in the Adelaide electorate will have their candidates in this order on their ballots:
Under this you’ll find the Senate (upper house) candidates for SA as well.
If you’re looking for more info on candidates or your electorate The Guardian have a seat explorer with loads of info from margins, electorate demographics and which parties have held seats previously.
How to vote in the Federal Election
It’s nearly time to go to the polls, but how do we vote in the Federal Election?
**Note: before you read this, please make sure you're registered to vote. There's nothing worse than showing up on election day and finding out you didn't register, and can't vote. Click here to make sure you're enrolled to vote.
HOW TO FILL IN YOUR BALLOT PAPERS
There are two ballot papers: The small green one, and the big white one. We'll break them down separately.
First, some key points:
The ballot papers have the instructions on them, so you don't have to memorise this. It's just to help you be know what you will be faced with.
If you make a mistake, you can always ask for another ballot paper.
Technically, legally, you don't need to fill in the ballot papers. You can hand them in blank if you really want to.
If you draw an illustration, or write things on your ballot papers, and those drawings or writing enters the square boxes... there's a chance your vote could not count. So... be smart.
Ok. Let's go.
THE SMALL GREEN ONE
Proper title: House of Representatives Ballot Paper
Who am I voting for: A person to represent your electorate in the House of Representatives (lower house)
What does that actually mean: You’re picking someone who will represent you and your area in South Australia.
What does it look like?
How do I fill it in:
Put a '1' in the box next to your favourite candidate (or party).
Put a '2' in the next next to your second favourite.
Keep going until all the boxes are marked.
Alternatively, you can mark the candidate or party you like the least with the lowest possible number, and work your way up.
Make sure the numbers are clear.
You have to mark all the boxes for your vote to be valid.
You can practise voting for the House of Representatives using this ballot here.
THE BIG WHITE ONE
Proper Title: Senate Ballot Paper
Who am I voting for: The make-up of the Senate (upper house)
What does that actually mean: You’re voting for who you think should review legislation passed through the lower house
What does it look like?
How do I fill it in:
Same as above, in that you put a '1' next to your favourite candidate, a '2' for your second favourite, and so on.
If you vote 'above the line', you need to mark at least six boxes 1-6.
If you vote 'below the line', you need to mark at least twelve boxes 1-12.
However, with both, you are free to mark as many as you like.
You can practise voting for the Senate here.
Find your federal electorate
Not sure which electorate you’re in? Check here
Through the Australian Electoral Commission’s website you can find your federal electorate and current House of Representatives Member by searching with your postcode, suburb or electorate if you know it.
They Vote For You
Discover how your MP votes on the issues that matter to you.
Discover how your representatives in parliament vote on issues you care about with theyvoteforyou.org
You can search for your representative by name or find them using your postcode and see not only how they’ve voted but how strongly they’ve voted on issues.
You can also browse by issue, seeing how all representatives have voted in any one area.
ABC Vote Compass
A super handy tool that asks you questions on key election issues, and then compares your answers to where the parties stand.
Check out the ABC vote compass!
It’s a super handy tool that asks you questions on key election issues, and then compares your answers to where the parties stand. It’s not a ‘this is who you should vote for’ thing, but a handy guide to see which parties agree with you on issues that are important to you.
You can also check out this article that let’s you pick the issue/issues you’re passionate about and then read through what the parties are promising.