COMPULSORY VOTING.

Waipa Post, Volume 32, Issue 1927, 28 October 1926, Page 4

COMPULSORY VOTING.

THE 'Hrjgh 'Couiit of Australia fast week upheld the conviction of a man who 'was fined for his failure to vote at a gen'eral election. Voting is compulsory under the Commonwealth 'law, and the 'High Court has held in effect that there iis no ground (on which an elector may infuse to vote. The gentleman wlho sought the decision of the highest tribunal in Australia put forward the Claim that if an 'elector were compjellVed: 'to vote jfor a canirifidate who did noit rc|pre£(gn|t his views, 'in a case where |there was no candidate to represent them, the law was ultra Vidas. Presumably the -’High 'Court did not concern itstelf Ito any greait extent with that point: the Act say lS that when a poll .is taken every elector must vote, and that is all there is 'to it.

There ’is only onjg way open to the elector wlho does wot agree with any of the candidates or is one of those strange people who are conscientious objectors 'to <th|=i exercise o,f 'the 1 franchise: he can invalidate his voting paper. The law 'which compels a nvan to go through the process of recording a vote surely would no’t be, able to prevent his giving an informal vote. It would perhaps seem fruitless to compel an objector to give an invalid vote, but if compulsory voting 'is the good thing Australia believes it to be then thgi law should ,make no distinctions among voters. The last ganera.l election in the 'Oommonweiallth 'ceUltainly provided a testimonial for compulsory voting. At ■this previous election less than 60 per cent of the electors recorded their votes. On the last occasion the percentage was 91.08. Of those who did* not vc|te a considerable proportion probably consisted of sick persons and absentees, so that the compulsion law must be tregalrded as effective. It is to be hoped tha'\t Ithe law will not only compel people to vtote but also will serve as a means of encouraging them ,to take an interest in politics. If compulsory voting has that effect there certainly is something ito he said in ills favour.