Democratic Alternative Information Service:
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Preference Ticket Anomalies

1.   "Elect the President" group

This group, standing on a republican platform of popular election of the Head of State, has allocated its next preference to Glen Sheil of the Constitutional Monarchists. Voters choosing an avowedly republican group would not expect that their vote may help elect a vigorous supporter of the Monarchy. Under the system of proportional representation, this could well be the effect of a vote for "Elect the President".

This preference allocation has excited quite a lot of suspicion in republican circles, but the explanation from the group is clear, and difficult to argue against:

We have given our preferences to Glen Sheil and Flo Bjelke-Petersen (Constitutional Monarchists) as they have assured us that in the event of a Republic being established they favour the election of a President. Other Republicans favour the appointment of a President. We believe that the most important issue is that the President is elected.

For a more detailed analysis, see the explanation of voting tickets and the proportional representation system by constitutional lawyer John Pyke, who also examines the preferences of Alternative Three.

2.   "Constitutional Monarchist" group

The preferences of this group are even more difficult to explain without resorting to conspiracy theories, though it must be said that there could be an element of "I scratch your back, you scratch mine". A conservative monarchist group would be expected to try to maximise the number of monarchist delegates, by allocating preferences to the many known monarchist independents after the two monarchist groups. Instead, we find that a group proposing a relatively radical republican model ("Elect the President") is placed ahead of the sole independent monarchist on this group's ticket.

3.   "Young Queensland's Voice" group

This is more of an omission than an anomaly, but its effects need to be explored. Where preferences are not allocated, and voters vote "above the line", the vote has no effect if it does not elect one of this group's candidates. If it is accepted that this group's appeal will be mainly to younger voters, who would otherwise (according to all opinion polls) tend to support republican candidates, the effect of this "uncommitted" group's participation is likely to be a reduction in the overall republican margin over monarchist candidates and groups. There is no suggestion that this is anything but an unintended consequence.

If anyone has any information on the views expressed by candidates from these or any other groups, please e-mail them to republic@suncoast.com.au

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Ross Garrad, 13 November 1997