Smith v Australian Electoral Commission

In the matter of Smith v Australian Electoral Commission, the petitioner, Mr Smith, sought to have the Senate elections declared void due to the wrongful registration of the Fishing and Lifestyle Party under Part XI of the Act. The Australian Electoral Commission defended the validity of the elections and argued that the petition did not sufficiently allege facts capable of showing that the wrongful registration likely affected the outcome of the elections.

The legal issues before the court were whether the petition complied with section 355(a) of the Act, which requires the petition to set out the facts relied on that arguably lead to the invalidation of the election. The court also needed to determine if the petition established that the result of the election was likely to be affected by the alleged illegal practice, as required by section 362(3) of the Act.

The court found that the petition did not include necessary facts to demonstrate that the wrongful registration was likely to affect the outcome of the elections. The alleged facts, while suggesting that the existence of a party as a group could affect the distribution of preferences, did not address the specific matters necessary to show a likely impact on the election result. Additionally, the court noted that any amendment to the petition was not possible due to the expiration of the 40-day period stipulated in section 355(e) of the Act.

Therefore, the petition was dismissed for failing to comply with section 355(a) of the Act. The court will hear from the parties regarding the costs of the proceedings.