Politics & Law ATAR – Electoral Concepts Revision

Complete vocabulary review of essential electoral concepts, systems, and Australian constitutional requirements for the Politics & Law ATAR curriculum.

Elections

A formal process where citizens vote to choose representatives or decide issues, involving three elements: voters (electorate), candidates/parties, and the voting process.

Electoral Systems

The method used to convert votes into seats in parliament, based on the type of voting, how votes are counted, and how winners are decided.

First Past the Post (FPTP)

An electoral system where the candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority, characterized by single-member electorates and one vote per person.

Representative Democracy

A system where citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf, featuring regular elections and accountability to voters.

Electorates

Geographic areas represented by one member in parliament, which ideally have defined boundaries and equal population sizes.

Preferential Voting

A system where voters rank candidates in order of preference, requiring a redistribution of preferences to reach a majority winner of over $50\%$.

Proportional Voting

An electoral system where seats are allocated based on the proportion of votes received, typically utilizing multi-member electorates and a quota system.

Compulsory Voting

A legal requirement for citizens to vote, involving penalties for non-voting to ensure high turnout.

Majoritarian

An electoral system requiring the winner to gain a majority of over $50\%$, often using preferences and single-member seats.

Principles of Fair Elections

Standards that ensure elections are democratic, including that they are free from coercion, fair with equal opportunity, and held regularly.

Winner Bonus

A system used to create stability by giving extra seats to the winning party, as seen historically in Greece.

Malapportionment

Unequal representation caused by uneven electorate sizes, leading to unequal vote values and geographic imbalances.

Gerrymandering

The practice of manipulating electorate boundaries for political advantage to produce unequal outcomes.

Electors

Eligible voters in an election, defined in Australia by citizenship, an age requirement of $18+$, and enrolment.

Franchise (Voting Rights 1901–Now)

The right to vote and its expansion, including the $1901$ federal vote for white women, $1962$ full rights for Indigenous Australians, and $1984$ compulsory enrolment.

Electoral Compromise

The balancing of fairness and practicality in system design, such as Australia's use of different systems for the House and Senate.

Section 7 and 24

Sections of the Australian Constitution where Section $7$ concerns equal Senate representation for states and Section $24$ concerns population-based House representation.