Roach v Electoral Commissioner & Anor

Roach v Electoral Commissioner & Anor concerned a challenge brought by Mr Roach, a prisoner serving a sentence of imprisonment, against the Electoral Commissioner and the Commonwealth of Australia. Mr Roach sought to challenge the constitutional validity of s 300(1)(a) of the *Electoral Act 1918* (Cth), which disqualified persons convicted of an offence and serving a sentence of imprisonment from being enrolled as an elector or voting at an election.

The High Court was required to determine whether s 300(1)(a) of the *Electoral Act 1918* (Cth) was inconsistent with the implied freedom of political communication guaranteed by the Australian Constitution. Specifically, the Court considered whether the disqualification of prisoners from voting constituted an impermissible burden on this implied freedom.

The majority of the High Court held that s 300(1)(a) was invalid. Their Honours reasoned that the implied freedom of political communication, derived from the system of representative and responsible government established by the Constitution, requires that all adult citizens have the right to vote. They found that the blanket disqualification of prisoners from voting was not reasonably appropriate and adapted to serve a legitimate purpose in a system of representative government, and therefore impermissibly burdened the implied freedom. The Court distinguished this provision from laws that might disqualify prisoners for reasons of mental incapacity or those serving sentences for serious offences, which might be justifiable.

The Court declared s 300(1)(a) of the *Electoral Act 1918* (Cth) to be invalid.