Senate Elections
No. 63 of 1966
An
Act to make provision for the Election of Senators at a General Election of
Members of the House of Representatives.
[Assented
to 29 October 1966]
BE
it enacted by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, and the House of
Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—
Short
title.
1. This Act may be cited as the Senate
Elections Act 1966.
Commencement.
2. This Act shall come into
operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.
Incorporation.
3. This Act is incorporated and shall be read as one with the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918–1966 but
to the extent to which this Act is inconsistent with that Act this Act has
effect notwithstanding that Act.
Definition.
4. In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears, “casual vacancy”
means a vacancy in the place of a Senator occurring before the expiration of
his term of service.
Application
of Act.
5.—(1.) This Act applies when one or more Senators
for a State are, at a general election of Members of the House of
Representatives, to be elected to fill casual vacancies.
(2.) Where
there are two or more casual vacancies in the places of Senators for a State,
the elections to fill those vacancies shall be conducted as one election.
Method
of filling vacancies.
6.—(1.) Where—
(a) there is one casual vacancy in the
places of Senators for a State; or
(b) there are two or more such vacancies,
being vacancies for periods terminating on the same date,
and the
number of candidates is equal to or less than the number of vacancies, the
candidate, or each candidate, shall be declared to have been duly elected, but
if the number of candidates is greater than the number of vacancies, a poll
shall be held.
(2.) Where—
(a) there are two or more casual
vacancies in the places of Senators for a State, being vacancies for periods
terminating on different dates; and
(b) the number of candidates is equal to
or less than the number of vacancies for the period terminating on the later
date,
the candidate,
or each candidate, shall be declared to have been duly elected and to have been
elected to fill a casual vacancy terminating on the later date, but if the
number of candidates is greater than the number of vacancies for the period
terminating on the later date, a poll shall be held.
(3.) At a poll
referred to in the last preceding sub-section, each vacancy for a period
terminating on the later date shall be filled before any vacancy for a period
terminating on the earlier date.
Provisions
with respect to Senator-candidates.
7.—(1.) A candidate, who is, at the date of the
election, a Senator elected at a previous election is not capable of being
nominated unless, on or before the day of nomination, he has delivered to the
Commonwealth Electoral Officer for the State in respect of which he is a
candidate his resignation in accordance with Form A in the Schedule to this Act
of his place as a Senator.
(2.) A
resignation delivered in pursuance of the last preceding sub-section is irrevocable
but is conditional upon the Senator to whom it applies being elected.
(3.) If a
Senator to whom a resignation delivered under sub-section (1.) of this section
applies is elected, the Commonwealth Electoral Officer shall forward the
resignation to the President of the Senate or, if there is no President or the
President is absent from the Commonwealth, to the Governor-General.
(4.) If the
Senator is not elected, the Commonwealth Electoral Officer shall forthwith
return the resignation to the Senator.
Writs.
8. Where, in a State—
(a) there is one casual vacancy only, or
there are casual vacancies for periods terminating on the same date, the writ
for the election may be in accordance with Form B in the Schedule to this Act;
or
(b) there are casual vacancies for
periods terminating on different dates, the writ for the election may be in
accordance with Form C in the Schedule to this Act.
Nominations.
9. In an election to which this Act applies, nominations may be in
accordance with Form D in the Schedule to this Act.
Declaration
of election.
10. The Commonwealth Electoral Officer shall—
(a) in declaring the result of an
election to which this Act applies and the name of the candidate or the names
of the candidates elected at such an election, declare the period for which
each candidate is elected; and
(b) in certifying by endorsement on the
writ the name of the candidate or the names of the candidates elected at such
an election, certify the period for which each candidate is elected.
Powers
of Court of Disputed Returns.
11. Where in a State there are casual vacancies to which this Act
applies for periods terminating on different dates, the powers of the Court of
Disputed Returns in respect of a petition disputing the election or return
include power—
(a) to declare that a candidate who was
not returned as elected was elected to fill a casual vacancy for a period
terminating on a specified date; or
(b) to declare that a candidate who was
returned as elected to fill a casual vacancy for a period terminating on one
date was elected to fill a casual vacancy for a period terminating on a
different date.
THE SCHEDULE
Form a Section 7.
To
the President of the Senate.
or
To
His Excellency the Governor-General.
I, , being a
Senator for the State of (here insert
name of State) whose term of service expires on the thirtieth day of June (here insert the year in which the term of
service expires) and being a candidate for election as a Senator for the
State of (here insert name of State) at
the election to be held in pursuance of the writ issued on the day
of , 19 , hereby resign my place as Senator, conditionally upon my
being elected, as from the date of my election.
Dated
this day
of ,
19 .
(Signature)
Form b Section 8.
Writ for the Election of (here insert “a Senator” or “Senators”)
COMMONWEALTH
(Coat of Arms) OF AUSTRALIA
Her Majesty the Queen
To ,
the Commonwealth Electoral Officer for the State of (here insert name of State),
Greeting:
We command you to cause election to
be made according to law of (here insert
the number of casual vacancies to be filled) Senator(s) for our State of (here
insert name of State) to serve in the Senate of the Parliament of the
Commonwealth of Australia from and after the date of (here insert “his” or “their”)
election until the thirtieth day of June (here
insert the year in which the vacancy or vacancies will terminate). And we
appoint the day
of , 19 , at twelve o’clock noon, to be the day
and time before which nominations of Senators at and for the said election are
to be made. And we appoint the day
of , 19 , to be the day on which the poll is to be
taken in the event of the said election being contested. And we appoint (here insert name of building) at (here insert name of town) to be the
place of nomination at the said election. And we command you to endorse on this
our writ the name(s) of the Senator(s) elected and to return it so endorsed to
our Governor in and over our said State on or before the day of ,
19 .
Witness
(here insert the title of the Governor of
the State issuing the writ) at(here
insert place)in our said State
the day
of in the year of
our Lord One thousand nine hundred and .
By
His Excellency’s Command.
Form c Section 8.
Writ for the Election of Senators
COMMONWEALTH
(Coat of Arms) OF AUSTRALIA
Her Majesty the Queen
To , the
Commonwealth Electoral Officer for the State of (here insert name of State),
Greeting:
We
command you to cause election to be made according to law of (here insert the number of casual vacancies
to be filled) Senators for our State of (here insert name of State) of whom (here insert the number of casual vacancies to be filled for the period
terminating on the earlier date) shall serve in the Senate of the
Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia from and after the date of (here insert “his” or “their”) election until the thirtieth day of June (here insert the year in which the vacancy or
vacancies will terminate) and (here
insert the number of casual vacancies to be filled for the period terminating
on the later date) shall serve in the Senate of the Parliament of the
Commonwealth of Australia
The Schedule—continued
from
and after the date of (here insert “his”
or “their”) election until the
thirtieth day of June (here insert the
year in which the vacancy or vacancies will terminate). And we appoint the day of , 19 , at twelve o’clock noon, to be the
day and time before which nominations of Senators at and for the said election
are to be made. And we appoint the day
of , 19 , to be the day on which the poll is to be
taken in the event of the said election being contested. And we appoint (here insert name of building) at (here insert name of town) to be the
place of nomination at the said election. And we command you to endorse on this
our writ the names of the Senators elected and to return it so endorsed to our
Governor in and over our said State on or before the day of ,
19 .
Witness (here insert the title of the Governor of the State issuing the writ) at (here
insert place) in our said State the day
of in the year of our Lord One thousand
nine hundred and
By His Excellency’s
Commands
Form d Section 9.
COMMONWEALTH
OF AUSTRALIA
Senate Elections Act 1966
State
of (here insert name of State)
Nomination of Senator
To
the Commonwealth Electoral Officer for the State of (here insert name of State).
We, the undersigned electors on the
Electoral Roll for the State of (here
insert name of State), and entitled to vote at the election of Senators for
the said State do hereby nominate (here
insert the christian name or names in full, surname, place of residence and
occupation of the person nominated) as a Senator for the State of (here insert name of State)to serve in. the Senate of the
Parliament of the Commonwealth.
Dated
this day
of ,
19 .
Signature of Nominator | Place of Living | Subdivision for which
enrolled | Number on Roll |
I, of ,
consent to the above nomination and to act if elected and declare that I am
qualified under the Constitution and the laws of the Commonwealth to be elected
as a Senator.
(Signature of Candidate)
Witness—
Address—
Note.—The candidate’s
consent to the nomination and his declaration of qualification may be on a
separate paper and in any form, but if given on the nomination paper in the
above form their sufficiency is not to be questioned.
A nomination must be signed by not
less than six persons entitled to vote at the election for which the candidate
is nominated.