ACL congratulates independents Kerry Finch (Rosevears) and Robert Armstrong (Huon) on their re-election/election to the Tasmanian Upper House. Many commentators are trying to read into the results given that neither of the Liberal Party candidates in either electorate got up. Some are even pointing at the federal influences on the outcome. I think ABC’s Antony Green sums it up well: “I don't think you can read too much into the result. The state government has been there only a few weeks. The rejection of two Liberals in favour of local Independents is perfectly normal for the Tasmanian Legislative Council . . . And for Federal implications, I think there are few”.



This time next year we will see another three upper house seats contested. Mike Gaffney (Mersey), Craig Farrell (Derwent) and Ivan Dean (Windermere) will all be up for re-election.

MEDIA RELEASE



For release: Saturday March 15, 2014



The Australian Christian Lobby has congratulated the Liberal Party on its resounding win in the Tasmanian election and looks forward to working constructively with the new government.



ACL Tasmanian Director Mark Brown said the enormous amount of time the State Parliament spent debating contentious social issues such as same-sex marriage (twice), abortion and euthanasia had proven unattractive to mainstream voters.



Mr Brown said Christian voters had also been disappointed with the lack of engagement by Labor during the election campaign.



Premier-elect Will Hodgman and a large number of his candidates had participated in ACL election activities.



Mr Hodgman had participated in an election interview where he committed to amend anti-discrimination laws to provide a general exemption to Christian schools when it comes to enrolling students and hiring staff.



“This was a welcome announcement which means Christian schools will be able to enrol students and employ staff who share the ethos and values of the school without being in breach of anti-discrimination laws,” he said.



Mr Brown said the ALP’s lack of engagement with the Christian community may well have contributed to its election loss.



“Only one sitting Labor MP participated in the five Meet Your Candidate Forums conducted by the lobby throughout the state. This was in comparison with seven sitting Liberal MPs and three sitting Greens MPs who attended,” he said.



“The ALP’s poor result should make for some serious soul searching regarding the future direction of the party. Many Tasmanian Christian Labor voters were disappointed with the party’s lack of engagement with the constituency,” Mr Brown said.



Mr Brown said it was time for Labor to move back to the political centre to ensure its appeal to mainstream Tasmanians.



The disproportionate amount of time spent working with the Greens on a radical social reform agenda at the expense of front and centre issues like jobs and the economy has contributed significantly to tonight’s result. This sentiment was confirmed by former ALP Premier Paul Lennon who on last night’s ABC 7.30 Report stated “it was the preoccupation with the social issues in Parliament rather than the basic issues of health and education and job development”.



Mr Brown said Labor had much to commend to Christian voters and he hoped it would not give up on this constituency as it sought to rebuild.



“Labor has proud historical roots in Christianity amongst Irish Catholic workers and Protestant Methodists who were at the forefront of the creation of the trade union movement. The ALP in its rebuilding process should not ignore these important foundations and ensure its appeal encompasses the large Tasmanian Christian constituency,” he said.

Over the past two weeks ACL has run its trademark Meet Your Candidate Forums in each of the five Tasmanian electorates ahead of this Saturday’s state election.



There was a good turnout of both candidates and constituents averaging 10 candidates per forum and over 70 in the audience listening and asking questions of those seeking to be elected.



Sadly there was a noticeable absence of attendance from current sitting ALP members with only one Labor MP fronting the forums. In contrast both the Liberals and Greens had a strong showing at the events.



Questions put to the candidates were wide-ranging but generally reflected the general concerns in the community – the economy, jobs and education.



Out of all the major social issues that have characterised the last four years, abortion was the one that came up most often regarding recent changes to Tasmania’s abortion laws. Questions specifically targeted candidates’ views on doctors’ freedom of conscience and freedom of speech (right to protest near abortion clinics).



Feedback from both candidates and constituents was positive with all forums highlighting clear distinctions in the candidates but at the same time maintaining respect for the varying views from across the spectrum of those seeking people’s votes.

MEDIA RELEASE



Monday, 24th February 2014



ACL has released an exclusive video interview with Tasmanian Liberal Leader Will Hodgman about his position on issues of concern to Christians in the lead up to the state election.



ACL’s Tasmanian Director Mark Brown said Labor Premier Lara Giddings declined the opportunity to be interviewed but has said she would supply a written response to the questions.



Mr Brown said the 20 minute interview is available to watch on www.tasvotes.org.au.



“Mr Hodgman gives his position on a number of issues including unemployment, education, abortion, marriage, anti-discrimination, gambling, sexualisation of society and health,” he said.



If elected in March, Mr Hodgman gave an undertaking to amend anti-discrimination legislation to allow for a general exemption so faith-based schools would have the freedom to select staff and students who shared their ethos.



“On the issue of abortion, Mr Hodgman has indicated his concern at the legislation passed late last year which infringed on a doctor’s right to freedom of conscience,” Mr Brown said.



Mr Brown said ACL was providing opportunities for Christians to make an informed vote this election with its Strong Economy, Strong Communities Breakfast event tomorrow and Meet Your Candidate Forums being held around the state over the next two weeks.   



“Tomorrow’s business breakfast will discuss the importance of a strong Tasmanian economy to strong Tasmanian families and communities with economist Professor Ian Harper, local innovator and business strategist Professor Jonathan West, and Mission Australia’s Noel Mundy,” he said.



“The five Meet Your Candidate Forums provide an opportunity for people to meet their local candidates and understand the values and ideas that they’ll bring to the job if elected,” he said.



The website also has a conscience vote history table of current sitting MPs showing how they voted on issues including surrogacy, marriage, adoption, abortion and euthanasia legislation in the past three years.



Mr Brown said the majority of Tasmanians identify themselves as being of the Christian faith.



“Elections are a good time for Christians to positively influence society through electing people of good character who share their desire to see a more moral, just and compassionate society,” he said.



Mr Hodgman’s interview and other election resources are available at www.tasvotes.org.au.

The Hare-Clark system is named after its inventor, British barrister Thomas Hare, and the Tasmanian Attorney-General Andrew Inglis Clark, who modified it and persuaded Tasmania to adopt the system in 1896. It has been used continuously since 1909.



The system is a version of the Single Transferable Vote and is a form of proportional representation, which means parties are elected according to the proportion of the vote they receive.



Hare-Clark is used in Tasmanian Lower House elections and is similar to Australian Senate elections, with some key distinguishing differences.



One important difference between Hare-Clark and other systems is that voters are only required to fill as many preferences as there are vacancies, currently five in each Tasmanian electorate. Voters can fill in all boxes if they so choose but are not required to.



The most significant difference, however, is that in Hare-Clark there is no ticket voting, in other words, no above the line voting. This means that rather than voting by party, voters must vote for their preferred candidates in order.



With a ticket vote, a vote for a particular party will be distributed according to the preferences of that party. In Hare-Clark, this is not possible, so each voter must direct their own preferences.



This allows all voters to vote not according to the party but according to each individual candidate.







For example, after careful consideration of each candidate, a voter might choose to vote as follows:

1. Ted Smith – Party A



2. Mary Smith – Party B



3. Gary Smith – Party C



4. Wendy Smith – Party C



5. Martin Smith – Party B



6. Estella Smith – Party A



7. Bruno Smith – Party D



8. Natalie Smith – Party D

Of course, some voters want a particular party to win, and so can choose to vote first for all Party A candidates one by one, and then Party B candidates, and so on.



In Hare-Clark, as in other preferential voting systems, votes are not “wasted”. Each candidate needs to reach a quota of votes in order to be elected – in this case, about 16.7 per cent. Some candidates will receive many more votes than the quota. Surplus votes are then distributed proportionately according to how voters numbered their preferences until all quotas are filled. Likewise, if all the quotas have not been filled, then the candidate with the lowest number of votes is excluded and their votes distributed in a similar manner. Thus, it is not a waste to vote for either a high profile candidate certain to win a seat, or for a low profile independent almost certain not to win a seat.



This may seem complicated, but it ensures that the candidates elected are representative of the voters true preferences. Thankfully, there are sophisticated computer systems in place to crunch the numbers!



As Christians, we should value our vote and make informed decisions at the ballot box. There are good people of faith and values in different parties and running as independents.



So when you vote in the Tasmanian election, make sure you get informed about each candidate, numbering each individually.



For more information about the Hare-Clark system, see these resources:

• ABC article explaining the system before the 2006 Tasmanian election.



• Antony Green article “Visualising the Hare-Clark Electoral System”



• Tasmanian Electoral Commission page.



• The Proportional Representation Society of Australia has an article exploring some of the more technical aspects of the system in detail.