Come 21 May, every eligible Australian will go to the polling booths and cast their vote in the Federal Election. However, you must be enrolled to vote. 

Last week, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, called the upcoming Federal Election for 21 May. This means that in every state and territory, all Australians must go to a polling place in their local electorate and cast their ballot for the House of Representatives and the Senate on that day. To vote in this election, you must be an Australian citizen aged 18 and over. However, the deadline to enrol to vote is Monday, 18 April at 8pm, and you will be unable to vote if you have not enrolled.

If this is your first election.
You will be eligible to vote if you are an Australian citizen aged 18 or over. You can enrol to vote here. Even if you aren’t 18 yet, but will be by the 21st of May, you can still pre-enrol. Australian citizens over the age of 16 can pre-enrol.

If you have recently changed your name or address.
If you’ve recently changed your name, you can update your enrolment on the AEC website with your name change certificate. If you’ve recently changed address, you will also need to update your details to make sure you are voting in the correct electorate. You can do both of these things here.

If you need to check your enrolment.
Not sure if you’ve enrolled already? Or don’t know if your details are up-to-date? You can quickly check your enrolment details here.

If you can’t vote due to sickness or travel.
If, due to sickness or travel, you can’t vote at a polling place in your electorate on the 21st of May, you can also apply to vote in person early or via postal vote. However, you must do so before Monday 18th of April.

Have any further questions? Not sure if you’re eligible to vote? Don’t know how to vote?

Visit the Australian Electoral Commission website, where you can find all of the answers to any questions you might have. The AEC have also put together a handy how-to-enrol guide, which contains all of the most important info about how to enrol and vote.

You can also visit the websites of each party to find out more about their policies so you can make an informed decision on which party represents your views best.

Directly or indirectly, the outcome of this election will impact you as a student at the University of Melbourne. As students, we acutely feel the effects of federal policy—whether it be through higher education policy, precarious, insecure or casualised employment, our ability to access healthcare, the cost of living or renting, and especially our futures through action (or inaction) on climate change. All of these issues are impacted heavily by the policies and attitudes of the federal government.

This is why it’s your civic duty to have your voice heard by voting in the election. You have the power to decide who can form government and hold the balance of power in Parliament. But to wield this power you must vote. And to vote, you must be enrolled.

The 2022 Federal Election will shape the direction of Australia for the next three years. To ensure that your voice is heard, make sure to enrol to vote by the 18th of April. 

Further info:

Enrol to vote here: https://www.aec.gov.au/enrol/

Update your enrolment: https://www.aec.gov.au/enrol/update-my-details.htm

Not sure if you’re enrolled?: https://check.aec.gov.au/

More info: https://www.aec.gov.au/

How to enrol guide: https://www.aec.gov.au/voting/files/guide-enrolling-voting-large-print.pdf

Disclosure:

Benjamin Jarick and Ruby Craven are the University of Melbourne Student Union (UMSU) Education (Public) Officers.

Ruby Craven is the President of the Melbourne University ALP Club and is involved in the campaigns of various ALP candidates