Ms Beazley said she would like to consult on introducing four-year full spill elections to replace the current two-year half spill model to address voter fatigue and “enliven the process”.
I think that maybe we’re stuck in a cycle of
- Local government isn’t given any real responsibility
- The best candidates don’t bother or try seek change in other ways
- There are no inspiring candidates and local government is just about taking out the bins and keeping the stop signs working anyway so why bother voting
- Councils are filled with self interested and vain people with no ambition to do anything. We obviously can’t give them any real responsibility.
- Return to 1.
I have lots of thoughts about local government but no firm ideas. That said I 100% think compulsory voting is a good start.
I didn’t realise it was only WA and SA that don’t have compulsory voting for LG elections.
Hard disagree here.
It depends what you mean by “real responsibility”. Our local council is responsible for implementing and maintaining all of our recreational facilities. I’m pretty stoked with what we have here in Albany and I think it’s taken real vision over the last several decades to achieve it. It’s a slow, methodical, and unsexy, but it’s real public service.
I’m also not really sure what change you expect candidates to seek. I want candidates to represent their constituents. The only “change” should match contemporary society.
I do agree that there certainly are some self interested and vain people on local councils, and that’s all the more reason to consider carefully who is elected. It’s a position that state and federal politicians use to get exposure, and in that regard it really works. In this regard I think it’s really important to vote for sensible candidates and compulsory voting would mitigate the risk that the nutty right wing candidates don’t get up.
You could be, and probably are, right. I’m a bit disillusioned by the past 2 shires I’ve lived in and I think that if managed well some things like education and healthcare could have a great deal more input from local government.
I’m a decentralist by instinct but whether that degree of decentralisation is achievable or even desirable I’m not sure.
That said I love the way Albany in particular has changed over the past few decades and you’re right that local government is to thank for that. I’m less enchanted by how Busselton has changed over the past few decades and I think local government is to blame. I do wonder if there was compulsory local elections we might have seen less unchecked development.
As I say, I’m in the self education phase of forming opinions so thanks for your thoughts.
Yeah there’s certainly some very poorly run, and even corrupt local councils in the south west. Loads of councillors that just don’t have the skills for good governance.
A month or so ago I posted in this community concerned about all the nutty candidates standing for election. We had 24 standing for 4 seats. About a third were mask-off MAGA authoritarians, another third were just idiots with no idea how council works, but the remaining third at least didn’t fall into either of those categories and contained a couple I regard highly.
In Albany in recent years there has been elements of the community conducting a campaign against what I would call contemporary values. They tried to manufacture a shit-storm about books available from the library. They went looking for sex-ed books and tried borrowing them with kids library cards, et cetera.
The next thing was something to do with transgender usage of the change rooms or toilets at the swimming pool. I don’t know the details.
Keen observers will notice their Trump style public relations - anything to generate division, hatred, and vitriol.
They use local council as a platform from which to stoke foment.
So far in Albany they’ve done a really great job of managing this vocal minority. Everyone gets heard but ultimately the response is balanced against community values. It would only take a few nutters on the council to change that attitude, and without compulsory voting there’s a risk that the nutters could install at least one nutter.
I’m sorry to berate you with this, and that’s not my intention - just something I feel strongly about.
They tried to manufacture a shit-storm about books available from the library. They went looking for sex-ed books and tried borrowing them with kids library cards…
Thats so over the top. These people are so tiring.
I agree about the sports and recreation facilities, when i went down for the whale hot air balloons earlier in the year i’s surprised by that Sharks Footy stadium. Really well done.
The two year half spill model should definitely go. From a team dynamics point of view, these people have to getvised to and become effective again every two years. An effective team can take a while to spin up, especially in a role where most people coming into it have had little or no experience in that kind of role before.
Thats not even to mention the game playing and politicking, such as trying to wait out the clock on council members before decisions are made.
From a team dynamics point of view, these people have to getvised to and become effective again every two years. An effective team can take a while to spin up,
I think this is an argument in favor of a 2 year half spill. At any given moment, a minimum of half the team has been there for a minimum of half the time.
I get that argument. I suppose there trade offs with differing options like this.
I landed on the side that the negatives oitweighed yhe positives. Having half more experienced councillors to half (possibly) less experienced could be a problem where cynical councillors use the new councillors weakness to shift decisions in favour of pet projects, etc.
But maybe i’m being overly cynical about the sincerity of councillors to do the right thing by each other.
Good.
This way extremists won’t corner the vote.
I normally vote. This time, I forgot.
We get one letter in the mail, and that’s it. The occasional candidate poster in the suburb.
Yes, it’s on me for not putting it in my calendar. But at the same time - I feel like there needs to be more advertising or something to prompt us.
Only just remembered in time myself. We had a surprising amount of corflutes about the place. One candidate even sent round a leaflet, full colour, glossy paper, well designed, impressive material for a local election.
WAEC could do more about the vote, maybe the switch proposed makes WAEC election promotion a more manageable prospect, one campaign every four years, instead of two.
Admittedly I didn’t bother voting this round.
There was only one challenger to the current representative in my area.
They hardly said anything different in their blurbs anyway.
TIL, since it’s already mandatory for Victorians, as far as I’m aware.
Between this and SA’s new election funding rules, Australia’s democracy can’t stop winning right now.
It does feel pretty good down under at the moment. Feels like we’re keeping our heads while a lot of the world are starting to lose theirs. If we use this tumutuous time to bed down and develop democratic practices in this country, i’ll be happy as a clam.
