Ralph Babet and Clive Palmer lose case against AEC, which is following precedent by counting ticks but disregarding crosses in upcoming vote
Ticks on the Voice referendum ballot paper will count as yes votes while crosses will be invalid, the federal court has ruled, rejecting a challenge brought by United Australia Party senator Ralph Babet andOn Wednesday Justice Steven Rares ruled in favour of the Australian Electoral Commission, rejecting an argument from Babet and Palmer’s lawyers that ticks should also be invalid if crosses are not accepted as valid no votes.
Rares explained that a cross is used “both as a means of selecting one of two or more choices and as indicating a negative choice” and is therefore “inherently ambiguous”. “Unlike a cross, which has more than one signification, either approval or disapproval … the tick approves or selects the affirmative as the voter’s answer,” he said in an oral judgment.In August the AEC commissioner, Tom Rogers,
and count ticks as yes votes but crosses as informal because it is not sufficiently clear whether a cross indicates an intention to vote yes or no.suggesting that the process is “rigged” against the no voteBabet and Palmer’s counsel, Philip Santucci, had submitted that ticks can also have multiple meanings, including that voters might “tick the box to comply with their duty to vote” not to indicate support.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Australia to intervene in Ukraine-Russia case before UN World CourtAustralia will support Ukraine’s case against Russia along with a cohort of 31 other countries at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Wednesday.
Read more »
Protester who held sign outside London climate trial prosecutedTrudi Warner, 68, prosecuted for contempt of court after protest outside London court
Read more »
‘Everyone was doing the crane kick’: Ralph Macchio on making The Karate Kid‘Daniel has bravado and won’t quit. If I got my ass kicked by five karate experts on motorcycles, I would have probably found a different way to school’
Read more »
Court dismisses case against AEC to count crosses in Voice referendumThe federal court has dismissed the United Australia Party’s bid to force the Australian Electoral Commission to count crosses as a ‘No’ vote against the Voice to Parliament in the referendum. Australians will be told to write ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ on a ballot paper asking if they support changing the constitution to include an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. The Australian Electoral Commissioner previously admitted a tick may be considered a valid vote but a cross would be rendered informal. Mining magnate Clive Palmer and UAP Senator Ralph Babet launched the court challenge against the AEC in September. “Unlike a cross, which has more than one signification, either approval or disapproval … the tick approves or selects the affirmative as the voter’s answer,” Justice Steven Rares said.
Read more »
Manchester United confirm Aaron Wan-Bissaka will be out for ‘several weeks’Manchester United have confirmed Aaron Wan-Bissaka is set to be sidelined for “several weeks” due to injury
Read more »
Yokohama F. Marinos vs Incheon United - Asian Champions League Group Stage Qualifiers, 2023Follow Asian Champions League live with instant updates on the match between Yokohama F. Marinos and Incheon United. See all the live stats, team line ups, betting odds, fantasy & match updates here.
Read more »