General Right to Vote
Constitution
(1900, last amended 1977)

• Section 7 states, "The Senate shall be composed of senators for each State, directly chosen by the people of the State, voting, until the Parliament otherwise provides, as one electorate."
• Section 30 states, "Until the Parliament otherwise provides, the qualification of electors of members of the House of Representatives shall be in each State that which is prescribed by the law of the State as the qualification of electors of the more numerous House of Parliament of the State; but in the choosing of members each elector shall vote only once."

Exclusion Based on Intellectual Disability
Electoral Law
Commonwealth Electoral Act
(1918

• Section 93, subsection (8) states, "A person who (a) by reason of being of unsound mind, is incapable of understanding the nature and significance of enrolment and voting...is not entitled to have his or her name placed on or retained on any Roll or to vote at any Senate election or House of Representatives election."
• Section 118, subsection (4) states, “The DRO shall not remove an elector’s name from the Roll on the ground specified in paragraph 93(8)a unless the objection is accompanied by a certificate of a medical practitioner stating that, in the opinion of the medical practitioner, the elector, because of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of understanding the nature and significance of enrolment and voting.”

Voter Assistance
Electoral Law
Commonwealth Electoral Act
(1918,

• Part XVB, Division 1 is entitled “Trial of electronically assisted voting for sight-impaired people.”
• Section 202AB, subsection (1) states, “The regulations may provide for sight-impaired people to vote by an electronically assisted voting method at the first general election, and the first Senate election, held after the commencement of this section.”
• Section 202AB, subsection (2) details the voting assistance that may be provided to the sight-impaired.
• Section 234 is titled “Assistance to certain voters” and describes the procedures for rendering such assistance.
• Section 234, subsection (1) states, “If any voter satisfies the presiding officer that his or her sight is so impaired or that the voter is so physically incapacitated or illiterate that he or she is unable to vote without assistance, the presiding officer shall permit a person appointed by the voter to enter an unoccupied compartment of the booth with the voter, and mark, fold, and deposit the voter’s paper ballot.”

Poll Manuals
Scrutineers Handbook
(2010)

• Page 31 last paragraph states, “As a scrutineer, you may assist a voter if they ask you.”
• Page 32, paragraph 1 states, “The officer-in-charge may permit any voter who is blind or has low vision, is physically incapacitated, or has low literacy skills to be accompanied by a person appointed by the voter so that the person can mark, fold and deposit the voter’s ballot paper in the ballot box on behalf of the voter.”

Off-Site Voting
Electoral Law
Commonwealth Electoral Act
(1918,

• Section 184A, subsection (2) states, “An application shall be made on one of the following grounds...(b) the applicant: (i) is a patient in a hospital (other than a special hospital or a hospital that is a polling place); and (ii) because of serious illness or infirmity, is unable to travel from the hospital to a polling place; (c) because of serious illness or infirmity, is unable to travel from the place where he or she lives to the polling place...(f) a registered medical practitioner has certified, in writing, that the applicant is so physically incapacitated as to be incapable of signing his or her name.”
• Part XV (Sections 182 to 200) detail the specific procedures for voting by post.
• Section 200A, subsection (1) states, “An elector may apply for a pre-poll vote on any of the grounds set out in Schedule 2 [Section 184A].”
• Part XVA (Sections 200A through 202) discuss pre-poll voting procedures. 
• Section 224, subsection (2) states, “Where (a) a patient in a hospital is: (i) in the case of a by-election – entitled to vote in that election; or (ii) in any other case – an elector for the State or Territory in which the hospital is situated; and (b) the patient wishes to vote at the hospital; the presiding officer shall visit the patient for the purpose of taking the patient’s vote.”
• Sections 224, 225, and 226 detail the procedures for voting at a hospital.
• Section 234A describes the general procedure for voting outside the polling place.
• Section 234A, subsection (1) states, “If the presiding officer at a polling place is satisfied that a voter is unable to enter the polling place because of physical disability, illness, advanced pregnancy or other condition, the presiding officer may allow the voter to vote outside the polling place, in close proximity to the polling place.”

Poll Manuals
Scrutineers Handbook
(2010)

• Page 32, paragraph 5 states, “If the officer-in-charge is satisfied that an elector is unable to enter the polling place because of physical disability, illness, advanced pregnancy or other conditions, they may allow the elector to vote outside in close proximity to the polling place.”
• Page 18, paragraphs 3 and 4 state, “You have the right to be present during the conduct of mobile polling in hospitals. In hospitals which are polling places, polling officials take the ballot boxes and necessary voting equipment to patients during polling hours on election day.”
• Page 22, paragraph 2 states, “Electoral material, including how-to-vote cards, may be supplied to the general office of hospitals where mobile polling will take place. An officer-in-charge or electoral visitor who visits an elector in hospital must advise the elector what electoral material, including how-to-vote cards, is available and give any of the material to the elector on request.”
• Page 29-30 discusses the procedure for voting at hospitals.

Western Australian Electoral Commission Disability Action Plan
(2008)

• Past Progress
• General early voting (by post and in person) for electors with permanent disabilities, serious illness or infirmity.
• Mobile polling for those in hospitals, aged centres and other institutions
• Drive through polling places and redesigned desktop voting screens for electors with physical mobility issues.
• Hard of hearing counter cards, easy English and multi-lingual guides and a telephone typewriter facility for electors with hearing challenges.
• Magnifying sheets at polling places and printing of graphics on polling place cardboard furniture to identify the edges for electors with limited sight.
• Changes to the Electoral Act of 1907 to empower electors with disabilities to obtain assistance from any person they choose.
• Currently available electoral services for electors with disabilities and other voters with special needs.
• Mobile polling at hospitals and institutions
• Wheelchair-friendly access
• Accessible parking bays & disabled persons parking signs
• Assistance outside the polling place
• Drive-in-voting
• Desktop voting screens
• Video magnifiers
• Magnifying sheets and triangular pencils
• Assistance by another person who is not an elector
• Hard of hearing counter cards at all polling places
• Availability of telephone typewriter service
• Audio and braille ballots
• Future goals
• Ensure people with disabilities have same opportunities as other people to access our services and events.
• People with disabilities should have the same opportunities as other people to access our offices and other facilities.
• People with disabilities should receive information in a format that will enable them to access the information as readily as other people are able to access it.
• People with disabilities would receive the same level and quality of service from our employees as other people receive.
• People with disabilities have the same opportunities as people to make complaints.
• People with disabilities have the same opportunities as other people to participate in any public consultation.
• The specific strategies for achieving the above goals are on pages 10-15

• Constitution - http://aceproject.org/ero-en/regions/pacific/AU/Australia%20constitution%20act%202003.pdf/view
• Commonwealth Electoral Act - http://aceproject.org/ero-en/regions/pacific/AU/Australia%20-%20Cwlth%20Electoral%20Act%201918.pdf/view
• 2010 Scrutineers Handbook - http://www.aec.gov.au/Elections/candidates/files/scrutineers-handbook-e2010-v3.pdf
• Disability action plan - http://www.waec.wa.gov.au/about/documents/WAEC%20Disability%20Plan.pdf