news Voting in the 15 October ACT Legislative Assembly election is in full swing with over 19,000 votes already issued, as at Friday morning 30 September. Pre-poll voting opened on Tuesday 27 September and by Friday morning over 7,100 pre-poll votes had been cast, including over 5,700 electronic votes. ACT Electoral Commissioner, Phil Green, said over 12,000 postal ballot papers have also been mailed to electors, with more than 860 being posted overseas. At the same point at the 2012 election, approximately 13,000 pre-poll and postal votes had been issued. “Pre-poll voting is an easy alternative to postal voting for those who may be away from Canberra on polling day, or who for some other reason cannot attend a polling place on that day,” Mr Green said. “Many Canberrans know already that they will not be here on 15 October. These people can vote any weekday between now and polling day … they can also pre-poll vote on Saturday 8 October from 9am to 5pm. The six pre-poll voting centres are set up at convenient locations near Canberra’s major centres.”
26
This week, the ACT Electoral Commission will be delivering an Election Guide to all households which includes the addresses of the pre-poll voting centres and polling places, as well as details on how to vote and how the counting system works. Sample ballot papers and a list of the 141 candidates standing for election are available on the Elections ACT website. In total there are 123 candidates nominated by registered political parties. Parties include ACT Labor, Canberra Liberals, The Greens, Animal Justice Party, Like Canberra, Australian Sex Party ACT, Liberal Democrats, Sustainable Australia (ACT), Canberra Community Voters and The Community Alliance Party (ACT). There are 18 nonparty candidates. Voters in Brindabella have a choice of 28 candidates, Ginninderra 33, Kurrajong 27, Murrumbidgee 29 and Yerrabi 24. In total there are 141 candidates for the ACT election. On election day, Saturday 15 October, polling places will be open from 8am to 6pm. Voters may vote at any polling place in the ACT regardless of the electorate they are enrolled in. For more details, visit electionsact.gov.au
UC a tobacco-free campus The University of Canberra has gone completely tobacco-free, banning all tobacco products on the University’s Bruce campus as of Tuesday 4 October. The University of Canberra has been tobacco-free since 2010 with the provision of two designated smoking areas. It has now taken its commitment a step further and banned tobacco on its grounds altogether. These measures apply to all forms of tobacco products and e-cigarettes. The tobacco-free campus policy was introduced after extensive consultation with the University community last year, and its introduction will be supported by a range of education and awareness initiatives.
iSstock image
Voters start to have their say