The Australian Electoral Commission is the federal government agency responsible for organizing and monitoring federal elections and referenda . State and local elections are also under the control of the election commission in each state and territory.
| Australian election commission | |
|---|---|
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| general information | |
| A country | |
| Jurisdiction | |
| date of creation | 1984 |
| Parent agency | |
| Headquarters | |
| Site | aec.gov.au |
History and Structure
The commission was first established in 1902 as a branch of the Australian Department of the Interior. In 1973, it became known as the Australian Election Office , and the name continued until February 21, 1984, when it became the Australian Electoral Commission, a statutory body of the Commonwealth.
The Australian Electoral Commission consists of the Chairperson (Federal Court Judges or Retired Federal Court Judges), the Electoral Commissioner, and a non-judicial member (usually an Australian extras). The election commissioner has the authority of a minister under the Civil Service Act of 1998. The President and the third, non-judicial member, work in their positions part-time.
The Australian Electoral Commission has National Headquarters in Canberra and state-level headquarters in Adelaide , Brisbane , Darwin , Hobart , Melbourne , Perth and Sydney .
Each federal electorate has an incoming member of the polling station responsible for managing elections to the House of Representatives from the respective polling station. Each state also has an incoming member of the Australian Electoral Commission responsible for conducting Senate elections .
Responsibilities
The main responsibility of the commission is the holding of federal elections, by-elections and referenda . The commission should also monitor voters who did not vote and publish detailed election results. The Commission is accountable to the Joint Standing Committee on Australian Parliamentary Elections, and should report on how the elections were held and on the success of the elections in general. The Australian Electoral Commission also plays an important role in electoral education aimed at educating citizens about the electoral process during which representatives are elected and about constitutional changes (through referenda).