Proposed corflute ban, optional preferential voting rejected in SA parliament

Election posters will continue to line SA’s streets during elections after parliament sunk the government’s plan to overhaul the way we vote.

The State Government’s proposed reforms would have banned corflutes and made preferential voting optional on House of Assembly ballot papers.

The State Government’s plan to ban corflutes on public streets and make preferential voting optional has been defeated after crossbenchers sided with Labor in South Australia’s parliament on Tuesday evening.

Upper House crossbenchers Connie Bonaros and Frank Pangallo, of the SA-BEST party, and independent John Darley joined the Labor Party to vote down the State Government’s much touted electoral reform Bill.

The Bill was defeated by a narrow majority of just one vote.

Attorney-General Vickie Chapman labelled the move “disappointing”, but vowed to continue working on electoral reform in the future.

“A key component of this Bill was the banning of corflutes – single-use plastic posters that frustrate residents and are bad for the environment,” she said.

“We want to see these posters off the streets, as they’re costly, detrimental to the environment … and do little to educate voters about a candidate or their platform.”

In parliament on Tuesday, Opposition legal affairs spokesman Kyam Maher said the proposed reforms were a “fundamental attack on our democracy”.

The government’s proposed Bill sought to make sweeping changes to how South Australians vote.

Corflutes would have been banned on public streets and preferential voting on House of Assembly ballot papers would have been made optional.

Ms Chapman previously pitched the reforms as being designed to “support the democratic process” and bring laws up to speed with modern voters’ needs.

Mr Maher said optional preferential voting was “nothing but a cynical ploy by the Liberal Party to try to entrench their incumbency”.

Election signs - known as corflutes - would have been banned under the reforms. Picture: AAP/Emma Brasier

“What it would have the effect of doing – is it would make it all but impossible for a new independent ever to be elected to the lower house.

“To come to this chamber now, within a year of the next election … seeking to change the rules is, quite frankly, outrageous.”

Ms Bonaros wanted the optional preferential voting aspect of the bill be scrapped entirely, and spoke out in support of corflutes.

“We are strongly opposed to a ban on corflutes as these, for (SA-BEST), have often been the only viable form of political information available for access by people, especially regarding minority and non-incumbent candidates.”

SA Greens members Tammy Franks and Mark Parnell were split on the corflute ban.

Ms Franks supported the ban, while Mr Parnell held “reservations” about outlawing them.

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