Roach v Campbell Australian Electoral Commissioner & Anor

The applicants, Roach and Campbell, challenged the validity of s 165(1)(a) of the *Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918* (Cth) (the Act), which disqualified convicted persons from voting. The respondents were the Australian Electoral Commissioner and the Attorney-General of the Commonwealth. The case was heard by Hayne J of the High Court of Australia.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether s 165(1)(a) of the Act, by disqualifying convicted persons from voting, contravened the implied freedom of political communication protected by the Australian Constitution. Specifically, the Court had to determine if the disqualification provision unduly burdened the implied freedom by preventing a significant number of citizens from participating in the political discourse and process.

Hayne J found that the implied freedom of political communication, derived from the system of representative and responsible government established by the Constitution, protects communications about political or governmental matters. His Honour reasoned that the right to vote is fundamental to this system and that a law that disenfranchises a significant portion of the adult population, even those convicted of crimes, may impose an undue burden on this freedom. The Court considered the purpose of the disqualification, which was to reflect the community's condemnation of serious criminal conduct, but ultimately found that the blanket prohibition on voting for all convicted persons, regardless of the severity of the offence or the time elapsed since conviction, was not reasonably appropriate and adapted to that purpose. The provision was therefore held to be invalid.