Research suggests that Aboriginal participation in the electoral process is not as good as it could be. As a result, the VEC has created an Aboriginal Engagement Program.
"The VEC is committed to access and equity. Through this program we are making sure that Aboriginal people have the knowledge and opportunity to enrol and to vote. It is programs such as this that help ensure that everyone is equal at the ballot box."
The Australian Electoral Commission is marking 2012 as the Year of Enrolment to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Indigenous right to vote in federal elections.
In the Year of Enrolment, the AEC will strengthen its ongoing efforts to promote enrolment to Indigenous Australians to increase their electoral participation.
The program works closely with the Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander community in developing culturally relevant resources and materials, and delivers a range of voter education seminars and workshops. An emphasis of the program is on empowering Aboriginal people though classroom learning and community education.
The Victorian Electoral Commission recognises that Victoria’s Aboriginal people, as the original custodians of the land on which the State of Victoria stands:
have a unique status as the descendents of Australia’s first people; and
have a spiritual, social cultural and economic relationship with their traditional lands and waters within Victoria; and
have made a unique and irreplaceable contribution to the identity and well-being of Victoria.
The road to equitable voting rights for Aboriginal people has been long. A history of Aboriginal voting rights details this important part of Victoria's past.
Our Aboriginal Engagement Officer can deliver a range of voter education seminars and workshops. An emphasis of the program is empowering Aboriginal people with classroom learning and community education.
The VEC is currently conducting education workshops in Aboriginal communities around Victoria. To find out more about the workshops or to book a session for your school or community please see our outreach services page.
The Community Education Plan outlines three objectives which the Aboriginal Engagement Program works towards:
Working with secondary schools to provide young people with a positive experience of democracy in the school environment.
Developing partnerships with external organisations to deliver in-depth electoral education to those groups identified as facing barriers to civic engagement.
Providing information and outreach services to raise awareness of the electoral process among those groups identified as facing barriers to civic engagement.
The Aboriginal Engagement Program also links in with the following VEC strategies with regard to employment and research:
Attract and retain a workforce which is reflective of the diversity within the community.
Ensure the VEC maintains relevance by conducting research to better understand industry and community issues.
The activities of the VEC's Aboriginal Engagement Program are guided by an Aboriginal Advisory Group. This group includes a diverse range of prominent Aboriginal people as well as the Victorian Electoral Commissioner and other VEC staff. A full list of members is available here.
Between 2010 and 2011 the VEC conducted online research within the Aboriginal community. This research was intended to help the VEC learn more about barriers to enrolment and voting within the Aboriginal community and what might motivate more members of the community to participate.
Three participants in this survey were randomly selected and have each won an eight gigabyte iPod Touch. Congratulations to:
Jason B (Shepparton)
Paul S (Thomastown)
Ed S (Brookfield)
Student essay competition
Between June and October 2010 the VEC's Aboriginal Engagement Program ran a competition challenging Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander high school students to submit essays on the theme "Why is it important to vote?"
The winning entry was from Keisha Nash, a year 9 student from Mornington Secondary College. Keisha won a brand new laptop computer and the Victorian Electoral Commissioner, Steve Tully, presented her with a trophy at a ceremony at Parliament House.
Keisha's inspiring essay is now available online to read for yourself. Her success was also promoted in the community in the January issue of Peninsula-Wide (page 10), a Mornington Peninsula Shire Council publication (PDF 8.8MB, external link).
Further information about Aboriginal electoral rights, engagement and how the VEC respects the traditional people of Victoria are available on the Aboriginal resources page.
