"I can't stand politics" : What you really mean is you can't stand the hype, the lies, the lack of integrity, the puffery and possibly even you can't see that it is relevant to your life.
"I don't know how to vote" or ("I just draw a cock and balls on it") :). So you turn up cast a vote (based on the best looking tie or hairstyle), you cast a donkey vote (put numbers in boxes according to any random method other than what policy they represent) or do an informal vote (get your name ticked off and ... draw a cock and balls).
So why is politics important to you. Voting age or not. Politics are important because other people are making decisions about your life without asking you. They make decisions on how much money you make (and how much they take off you), whether you can get welfare, who you can marry, how much things cost, whether you can get education, training or a job, when you can drink and have sex (and who you are allowed to do that with)... they are even making laws on how you are allowed to dress and what you are allowed to say. You may not like politics but you need to be involved. If you choose not to then you give permission for others to do what they like with your life without complaint. Don't vote effectively and you permit the same thing. I find it ironic when I see a Facebook complaint about the government.. but in the next breath they admit to not voting.
"My votes doesn't count." Especially true when you don't cast one. The media and the party based governments LOVE to try to control your vote but it's the only thing they can't control fully. Don't for a second believe that when you hear phrases like "A vote for an independent is a wasted vote" or "Putting independents in parliament means ineffective government" that these sayings are not created for a specific purpose. Translated in big party speak "A vote for an independent means we don't have control over that persons opinions in parliament, an independent is likely to form their opinions by representing their constituents at a grassroots level instead of mirroring the party line." I don't know about you but I can see clearly how damaging it would be to the major parties if parliament has a high number of independents. Don't be manipulated. A conscientious vote regardless of who you vote for ALP, LNP, Greens etc or an independent is never wasted, it is in fact your very important obligation. Individually we might all be worker bees... but imagine if each worker bee had the opinion that they didn't count. No honey for anyone.
Your vote is protected by the constitution. It cannot be taken away from you ... though some actions by political parties might seem to indicate otherwise. Political parties WANT you to vote... for THEM. They spend millions of dollars persuading you. They manipulate the media, online stories and use a lot of clever and subtle psychology to do so. The average person is unaware of just how much their opinions are being manipulated.
So bottom line: Make sure you make an informed vote!
No matter what party or candidate you vote for there is no wrong answer. This is the basis of democracy. Represent the majority opinion by the casting of an informed anonymous, uninfluenced votes. The only wrong answer is not to vote, and not to be informed.
If you got this far you are already probably tired of thinking about it. I encourage you to hang in there.
So you "don't know how to vote". Well it doesn't have to be a chore.
First find out who your local candidates are. For the upcoming Queensland State election you can go here: http://www.abc.net.au/news/qld-election-2015/guide/
Find your electorate, then your list of candidates. Get a feel for who they are, their history and the platforms they stand for. Most candidates have a webpage or facebook page that outlines what is important to them or what they consider a priority for the electorate or the State. A quick look will give you a good feel for each of the candidates. Each of the major parties also have web pages that outline their policies (whether they can be believed or not is another matter).
Of course you can read for hours... if you want to. However look how far you have come. You now know the electorate you live in, the parties that have candidates standing for election, and depending how much reading you did, you probably know what's important to them and what they promote as a priority for your area.
Here's the kicker: "How do I choose?". I am a big believer in voting with your own conscience. You need to vote for those policies that you feel are important. Whether they be important to you personally or in a broader community context. It's up to you. I once voted ALP because they had a better arts policy than LNP, that's all it took. I am here to reassure you that whatever your rationalisation, as long as it represents your thinking then that is ok. There is no right answer, this is about creating a representative government that reflects the needs and wishes of the people of which you are one, and an important one.
On voting day:
So in the upcoming State Election (31 January 2015) you will go to your local polling booth and get your name checked off on the register (you will need to be enrolled and have ID). You will then receive a ballot paper for the House of Representatives.
The House of Representatives:
This is the house of government that contains your locally elected representatives, they vote on laws, policy, how to spend state money and reforms. This affects you.
The ballot form will have the names of all the candidates in your local area listed randomly. The candidate name will also identify their affiliated party. You can vote in three ways: primary preference, partial preferential and full preferential.
- If you wish to cast a single vote for one candidate only you put a '1' against the candidate name, leave all other boxes empty. Your vote will be counted as a primary vote with no preferences.
- Alternatively, you can number "1,2 and 3" against the names of the top 3 candidates and leave all other boxes empty.
- Finally you can also choose to put a preference against every name in order of first to last preference.
- Voting in any other way will make you vote informal and it will not be counted.
Seems a bit confusing doesn't it? Which option to choose? Well let me encourage you to cast a a full preferential vote. It is important for you to vote for WHO you want elected, but under our preferential voting system it is also important for you to vote for who you DON'T want elected. Let me explain:
For example, if you were to vote for the Greens Candidate, but really didn't want your preferences to go to the LNP or ALP candidate then you would number your ballot paper in preference of the Green's candidate as number '1' and number all other candidates, leaving the ALP and LNP candidates last.
Alternatively if you like the LNP candidate and the Green's candidate you might number the Green's first, LNP second, and then ALP last with all other candidates being numbered in between. Don't waste the power of your preferences.
Finally, your vote is anonymous. Don't write abusive comments on it. No one who matters will ever read it. If you obscure the voting boxes your vote won't count. So as much as you want to, please resist the urge to draw a ' dick and balls' and enjoy exercising your constitutional power. Happy voting!
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