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Question

Difficulty: HardVoting in Referendums

An official report on a recent national referendum to amend the Australian Constitution shows the following results:

Jurisdiction'Yes' Vote Majority Achieved?
National TotalYes
New South WalesYes
VictoriaYes
QueenslandYes
Western AustraliaNo
South AustraliaNo
TasmaniaNo
Australian Capital TerritoryYes
Northern TerritoryYes

Based on these results and the rules for changing the Constitution, what is the final outcome of the proposal?

  1. A
    The proposal is accepted because it achieved a majority of 'Yes' votes nationally and in a majority of all participating jurisdictions.
  2. The proposal is rejected because the 'Yes' vote only achieved a majority in three out of the six states.Answer
  3. C
    The proposal is rejected because changing the Constitution requires a unanimous 'Yes' vote from every state and territory in Australia.

Answer

The proposal is rejected because the 'Yes' vote only achieved a majority in three out of the six states.
For a referendum to pass in Australia, it must satisfy the 'double majority' rule. This means it needs a majority of 'Yes' votes from all voters across the nation, plus a majority of 'Yes' votes in at least four of the six states. In the provided data, although the national majority was achieved, only three states (New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland) voted 'Yes'. Since at least four states are required, the proposal is rejected.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Check the national total result.
The national total shows 'Yes', meaning the first part of the double majority requirement is met.
A referendum requires more than 50% of all voters across Australia to vote 'Yes'.
2
Count the number of states where the 'Yes' vote achieved a majority.
Three states (New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland) achieved a majority.
The second part of the double majority requirement depends specifically on the six states: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania.
3
Determine if the ACT and NT count toward the 'majority of states' total.
The territories (ACT and NT) do not count as states for this specific requirement.
While territory votes count toward the national total, they are excluded from the 'majority of states' count.
4
Compare the state count to the legal requirement.
3 out of 6 states is not a majority of states (which requires 4 out of 6).
Since the second part of the double majority requirement was not satisfied, the proposal fails.

Key Concept

The Double Majority Rule

Hints

1
Recall the 'double majority' rule required to change the Australian Constitution.
2
A referendum needs a majority nationally AND a majority in at least four out of the six states. Do the territories count as states?

Practice More

Review how the votes of citizens living in the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory are counted differently than those living in the six states during a referendum.
Estimated Time:2m 0s
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Topics

Voting in Referendums

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