The federal election has finally been called.
It's been a minute since the last one in 2022 and a lot has changed in politics since then.
But here's the stuff you can count on.
Do I have to vote?
YES!
Voting is compulsory for Australian citizens 18 and over.
If you're enrolled and you don't vote, you could get a fine from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC).
When is the federal election?
Saturday, May 3.
How do I enrol to vote?
If you're 18 or older, you need to make sure you're enrolled to vote.
If you've moved house since 2022, you'll also need to update your address.
You can make sure you're on the electoral roll and your details are correct online.
To check your details or register to vote online, head to aec.gov.au/enrol.
You can also enrol to vote at your local AEC office or by faxing or mailing an enrolment form to the commission.
The AEC website also lists a bunch of other ways to enrol if you have special circumstances that make enrolling to vote difficult.
When do I have to enrol by?
You have about a week to enrol to vote if you haven't already.
The document that determines that date and a number of other key dates still needs to be issued.
It's called a writ and the date it's issued has a domino effect on when the electoral roll closes, when candidate nominations shut, and more.
The writs will likely be issued very soon now the election has been called.
A week later, at 8pm, the electoral roll will close.
Can I vote early?
Yes.
8.41 million people voted early at the last election — nearly half of the 17.6 million people who were on the electoral roll — but technically you can't just rock up early because it suits you.
You can vote early if:
- You'll be outside the electorate where you are enrolled to vote or more than 8km from a polling place on election day
- You're travelling
- You'll be unable to leave your workplace to vote
- You're sick or due to give birth (or looking after someone who is)
- Your religious beliefs prevent you from going on the day
- You're in prison serving a sentence of less than three years
- You're a silent elector or have a reasonable fear for your safety
When does early voting open?
Generally speaking, you'll be able to head to early voting booths in the two weeks before election day.
Also, most early voting booths are open every day except Sundays.
But this will depend on your local early voting station, so check with the AEC's website for more details.
Can I do a postal vote?
Yes.
If you won't be in your electorate — aka, the local area represented by your member of parliament — you do have other options for voting.
You can vote early at a pre-polling centre or by post.
If you have access needs because of a disability, you can also do a postal vote or vote by phone if you're blind or low vision.
How do I vote for who I want to be prime minister?
You don't.
In Australia, you vote for a local member to represent you in the lower house of parliament (the house of representatives) and who you want to represent you in the upper house, known as the Senate.
While the prime minister and opposition leader are the leaders of their parties, unless you live in their electorates you don't get to vote them into parliament.
They're selected by their colleagues in what's called a party room, where they get together and vote for who they want to be their leader.
An electorate, also known as a seat, is made up of around 110,000 voters living in the same area, so you — and everyone you live near — get to select a local member to represent you.
There's going to be 150 of them in the lower house in the next parliament — one for each electorate in the country.
This is important because whoever wins a majority of the seats in the lower house gets to form government.
Or, if they don't get enough on their own, whoever strikes an agreement with independents and minor parties to make up the numbers can form a minority government.
What electorate am I in?
Who you vote for will depend on which federal electorate you're in.
Your federal electorate has a different name to your state electorate.
This AEC website will tell you what electorate you're in.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page, enter your suburb, locality or postcode and hit the purple "find" button.
What are each party's actual policies?
Throughout the campaign we'll be covering who the parties and independents are, what they stand for and other key policies as part of our series Politics Explained.
And if you know a first time voter, or just someone who needs a refresher on how to vote or how parliament works we'll be covering that too!
Have Your Say: What matters to you this federal election?
