The Mount Isa City Council has gone into bat for voters in its satellite community, calling upon the Australian and Queensland Electoral Commissions to provide a polling booth at Camooweal at all future elections.
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They shouldn't be treated any differently, regardless of cost.
- Tony McGrady
The resolution put up by Cr Anne Seymour and passed unanimously at Wednesday’s council meeting in Camooweal described the current system as “forcing the community to participate in postal voting”.
“We instruct the city council, if it organises the municipal election in March 2016 to likewise have a polling booth,” it concluded.
The community of 300 has had full postal voting for around three years. At the time of publication the North West Star was unable to determine whether this was an Electoral Commission of Queensland decision due to a lack of numbers, as reported by the ABC in 2012, or because of an ECQ survey “some years ago” in which most Camooweal residents agreed to go on the postal list in preference to a polling booth, according the North West Star of April 2012.
However, council now believes voters should have a booth.
“We’re all equal – they shouldn’t be treated any differently, regardless of the cost,” Mount Isa City Council Mayor Tony McGrady said.
