02.02.06
Nomination and Selection Questions
From the 2004 Senate Inquiry into an Australian Republic Discussion paper:
One of the most critical and complex issues is the method for selecting the head of state. One view is that direct election of a head of state would give the people a say in who would represent them as head of state.
Should assistance be given to the candidates? There might be no obvious justification for doing so. However, if it is judged to be appropriate, how might this assistance be given?
Should there be prohibitions on the participation of political parties in campaigning or in campaign financing? Some have suggested such restrictions are easy to circumvent and therefore not realistic.
Prior to selection, there would need to be a method for nomination of potential candidates for head of state. Some proposals put forward include nomination; by the Prime Minister; by a nominations committee; by a joint vote of the Senate and the House of Representatives, or of any state or territory parliament; by a petition of voters with a minimum number of signatures (eg 3000 nominators, one percent of electoral roll, Parliament to select short-list); and by open nomination.
The following questions on selection were asked by the 2004 Senate Inquiry into an Australian Republic:
- Should some form of campaign assistance be available to nominees, and if so, what assistance would be reasonable?
- Should/Can political parties be prevented from assisting or campaigning on behalf of nominees? If so, how?
- If assistance is to be given, should this be administered by the Australian Electoral Commission or some other public body?
- If the Australian head of state is to be directly elected, what method of voting should be used?
- If direct election is the preferred method for election of a non-executive president, will this lead to a situation where the president becomes a rival centre of power to the Government? If so, is this acceptable or not? If not, can the office of head of state be designed so that this situation does not arise?
The following questions were asked on nomination:
- Who should be eligible to put forward nominations for an appointed head of state? For elected head of state?
- Should there be any barriers to nomination, such as nominations from political parties, or candidates being current or former members of parliament?
- Should there be a maximum and/or minimum number of candidates?
- Should there be a minimum number of nominators required for a nominee to become a candidate?
DavidLatimer Said:
June 13, 2006 at 5:32 pm
Under the Honorary President Republican Model, three candidates will be nominated by public petition with only the most supported candidates appearing on the ballot. This means any Australian citizen can become our Head of State.
Each of the six state parliaments can also make one nomination of a former Governor or Lieutenant Governor of their state. The Federal Parliament can make an additional nomination of a former Governor-General.
The election for the Honorary President will be held a several weeks after a general election. Voters will receive their voting papers in the mail, along with a booklet introducing all the candidates and their record of community service. The approval voting system isused so there be no ranking, how-to-vote cards or preference deals.
The Australian Electoral Commission will receive and count the votes, announcing the most approved candidate as our next Honorary President. The second and third placed candidates become our Honorary Vice Presidents.