Aboriginal community airs concern after SA Voice representatives elected with as few as six first preference votes

Concerns have been raised after the inaugural vote in the state’s Voice to Parliament with one representative elected on as few as six votes. See the vote count for each elected member.

South Australia’s inaugural Voice to Parliament has been branded “just a customer complaint line” amid dismal voter turnout and questions over the election process.

About 30,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were eligible to vote in the recent elections, but Electoral Commission SA figures show just 2583 formal votes were received.

The 46 successful candidates elected from six regions included 12 who polled fewer than 20 first preference votes.

Actor and activist Natasha Wanganeen said she was among more than 90 per cent of eligible voters who did not participate.

Ms Wanganeen said many Aboriginal people failed to see the point of the $10.3m legislated state Voice, particularly following the failure of the federal referendum.

“Why would the rest of the 30,000 people rush to the polling booth when they’ve seen this before in the form of ATSIC, they know that it’s just a customer complaint line for Aboriginal Affairs,” she said.

Actor and activist Natasha Wanganeen. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Morgan Sette

“It’s an advisory panel, at the end of the day. It’s not actually something that’s going to make the major, major changes that we absolutely desperately need.”

Janette Milera was an unsuccessful candidate in region three, which covers the Flinders Ranges and Upper North, after she polled 21 first-preference votes.

She felt “grassroots candidates” had been disadvantaged throughout the election process.

“Those that have privilege … managed to campaign better than those at grassroots level because they have access to the resources, unlike people like me,” she said.

“Grassroots candidates have family members that don’t have access to vehicles, don’t have access to information, don’t have the privilege.”

Ms Milera also called for greater clarity around the election of public servants as Voice representatives, after several were successfully elected.

She cited the public sector code of ethics, which states employees must not be influenced by vested interests and remain politically neutral.

“If they are currently working in state government, how will this conflict be managed?” she said.

Kylie O’Loughlin, who stood unsuccessfully in the central region, said she felt the low voter turnout was because of “longstanding” distrust of the government among Aboriginal people.

She agreed with Ms Milera’s comments that the process favoured some candidates over others.

“The government promoted this as grassroots. It’s not grassroots,” she said.

Laura Henderson on Tuesday became the latest Liberal to call for the Voice to be repealed, after her upper house colleague Ben Hood over the weekend said it was “a recipe for corruption and nepotism” and should be abolished.

Ms Henderson said “it should concern all South Australians that a body as unrepresentative as the Voice, where one can be elected with as few as six votes, can influence the outcome of a democratically-elected parliament”.

However, opposition Aboriginal affairs spokesman Josh Teague said the Liberals will not form their policy on the Voice until closer to the 2026 election.

“We will keep a close eye on the state-based Voice and, if it’s not working, we will be more than willing to amend its operation or even abolish it entirely.”

In response to Ms Henderson, a government spokeswoman said “the Liberals continue to misrepresent the purpose of this body”.

“It is not a decision-making body, it is an advisory body and governments can decide what to do with this advice. The Voice allows Aboriginal South Australians to have a say in the decisions that affect their lives.”

Regarding public servants who have been elected as Voice representatives, the spokeswoman said the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment provides advice on such matters.

“As with any public servant who sits on any advisory body, including government advisory boards, if there is a conflict with the advisory board and their role in the public sector that is something they will have to work through,” she said.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister Kyam Maher last week said “we will look to strengthen engagement ahead of the next Voice election”.