Legislative Council How To Vote

There appears to be confusion about just how our voting system in New South Wales works. In the interests of clarifying the process, the following information has been sourced from the State Electoral Commission of New South Wales.

For New South Wales State elections there are 2 methods of voting used:

1. The method of voting for the Legislative Assembly is known as optional preferential. This means that after you have shown your first choice, it is up to you whether you show further choices.
2. The method of voting for the Legislative Council is known as proportional representation. To be elected under this voting system a candidate needs to gain a quota of the formal votes.

Legislative Council – Upper House
The New South Wales Legislative Council consists of 42 members who represent the whole State in Parliament. At each State election 21 members are elected to serve a maximum of eight years.

The names of the candidates are shown on the ballot paper. If they are endorsed (i.e.nominated) by a
registered political party, the name of that party is also shown. The Legislative Council ballot paper has a
thick line running across it. There are squares above this line and squares below it. The squares above the line represent the groups of people listed below the line. A group must have at least 15 candidates before it can have a group voting square above the thick horizontal line.

You can vote for a group (e.g. a Party) by filling in squares above the line or you can vote by filling in
squares below the line. If you choose to vote above the line, you must put a number '1' in one of the
squares above the thick horizontal line. That is all you have to do. But if you want, you can show your
second choice of group and more choices if you want, by putting a number '2', then '3' and so on in the
squares above the line.

Should you choose to vote under the line, you need to write the numbers 1 through to 15 in the
squares ensuring you don't miss a number or double up on a number for the vote to be valid.