Early voting centres open today (22 April). Photo: AEC
Early voting centres for the federal election open today, Tuesday, 22 April, and the Australian Electoral Commission is forecasting a huge turnout before the actual polling day on 3 May.
The centres will open progressively across the country from tomorrow until Friday, 2 May, and the AEC says, based on past trends, it anticipates that about half of all voters will cast their votes – either in-person, by mobile, or by post – during this early period.
Voters physically turning up to any of those centres that will be open this coming Saturday should expect to find queues.
This election is likely to see an even higher number of early voters than usual, as the electorate in general has already grown weary of this very dull campaign.
Many voters have either made up their minds or are hoping that casting an early vote will somehow bring an end to the mind-numbing election news they’re being spoonfed.
For many Australians, the Easter long weekend heralded the end of the election campaign.
They’ve now switched off and are looking forward to the coming Anzac Day long weekend far more than they are bursting to see the makeup of the nation’s next parliament.
For the handful of people still engaged in the campaign, the third leaders debate will be aired tonight on Channel Nine.
There’s not much prospect that tonight’s event will be any better than the first two instalments on Sky and the ABC.
It’s certainly not any fault of the debates’ hosts, who have done a fine job steering questions and keeping the leaders on track.
It’s purely that Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton have been, if nothing else, boring.
The Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader have each done a splendid job in getting Australia to tune out (which might well be the intent).
The best parts of the debates so far have been … sorry, I just fell asleep thinking about it.
But onward we press in the hope of some entertainment tonight, even if substance and some meat on policies is too much to ask for.
Between now and 3 May, however, we can be assured of hearing ad nauseam how a “re-elected Albanese government will improve access to bulk billing GPs” and how a Dutton-led Coalition government will “keep our communities safe”.
The Coalition has provided some light entertainment over its work-from-home policy and the intent to sack 41,000 public servants.
The on-again, off-again policies have been kept alive by shadow ministers who can’t seem to agree with each other or decide if these are actual Coalition policies or not.
Ending work from home has been a good case in point.
Shadow finance minister Jane Hume, who really, really wants to force public servants back into the office five days a week, recently suggested that it’s still the plan despite Mr Dutton’s apology and backdown over it.
Senator Hume said it “was a good policy that hadn’t found its appropriate time”. That allowed Labor to claim that ending work from home was still the Coalition’s agenda.
Shadow housing minister Michael Sukkar had to hose it down when he appeared on the ABC’s Insiders program on Sunday.
“We’ve made it very clear we have left that behind,” he said.
“We have heard very clearly and absolutely that on behalf of taxpayers, we have got to get the best possible public service.
“I think that requires the best possible people, and I would expect that that requires flexible working arrangements.”
Has anyone told Senator Hume that?
Mr Dutton’s own ruminations on the public service over the Easter weekend led him to talk up the possibility of bringing disgraced former Home Affairs secretary Mike Pezzullo back into a senior role if the Coalition wins the election.
The Opposition Leader’s thinking out loud about it just allowed the PM to state the obvious – that Mr Dutton wants to get rid of 41,000 public servants but bring back one.
Bereft of any real policy debate from the major parties, independents are once more filling the void in numerous electorates.
And so scared are the big players of losing more influence over the electorate that the campaign has resorted to dirty and illegal tricks aimed at some independents.
The AEC has launched an investigation into more than 47,000 pamphlets having been distributed in Sydney’s Wentworth electorate attacking independent incumbent Allegra Spender.
The pamphlets lack the required authorisation for election material during campaigns.
They simply state: “Produced by the people of Wentworth for the people of Wentworth.”
Pretty gutless and very illegal.
Are we there yet?
Original Article published by Chris Johnson on Region Canberra.
