Those looking for more input in the direction of the City of Perth will have to buy or lease a property in the city before October in order to get a chance of securing a vote in its council and mayoral elections.
Those looking for more input in the direction of the City of Perth will have to buy or lease a property in the city before October in order to get a chance of securing a vote in its council and mayoral elections.
Several city councillors and political watchers are predicting the upcoming election will attract the strongest turnout of voters yet, with this the first year voters will be able to number ballot preferences rather than ticking their favourite box.
Western Australian Electoral Commission deputy electoral commissioner Lyn McKay said it was likely the state government would pass a bill when parliament resumed introducing a proportionate preferences system to replace the existing ‘first past the post’ voting system.
Ms McKay said the commission believed a proportionate preferences system would bring local government elections into line with federal and state government process and could make election results fairer once preferences were counted.
“Potentially, the people the electors want will get in rather than those who just passed the post and didn’t get the majority vote,” Ms McKay said.
Under the present system, those candidate/s who receive the highest number of votes are elected.
With proportionate preferences, a candidate must secure more than 50 per cent of the total vote to win.
City of Perth councillor Janet Davidson said she would wait until the government made a decision on whether to introduce the proportionate preferences system, before deciding to run for the position of lord mayor.
“It seems to be a more equitable system. I hope it doesn’t happen that council will become too political,” she said.
City of Perth councillor Max Kay said he had a feeling the increased number of people making the city home this year would help to swell the numbers turning up to vote on election day. He anticipated an equal turnout of votes between business and residents.
“Seventy per cent of residents are below the age of 40, so I think it will be important to appeal to this demographic during the campaign,” Mr Kay told WA Business News.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the City of Perth has the fastest population growth of all local government area cities in Australia.
During 2005-06, the population of the city increased by 12.4 per cent, or 1,500 people, to 13,439 people.
Candidates can nominate for either a lord mayor or council position during the week following September 7.
Voters must either be a resident, non-resident owner, or a non-resident occupier of a ratable property in order to have a say.
