Proposed Indigenous Voice to parliament would have 40-members from six regions

A proposed 40-member state-based Indigenous Voice to parliament would be split into six regions, under a model being developed by the government.

A South Australian First Nations Voice to parliament would see 40 members make up the full structure of the elected body, according to a draft model released on Thursday.

Under the proposed structure, there would be an even number of men and women who would be elected to represent six regions across the state, called the Local First Nations Voice.

Each region would have three men and three women, except for the metropolitan region which covers the greater Adelaide area, which would have five men and five women due to a larger population.

Out of the 40-members, 12 would then be chosen by already elected members from each region and would go on to form the State First Nations Voice.

Attorney-General and Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Kyam Maher said the structure was still open for discussions with Aboriginal communities as a second stage of statewide engagements resumed on Thursday.

“This is a rough draft just for the sake of going out to consult about what it might look like,” he said.

“On this model there would be elections held for Aboriginal people to nominate and then vote on representatives to these local Voice bodies.”

SA First Nations Voice Commissioner, Dale Agius said the second round of engagements would help finalise the First Nations Voice Bill 2022.

“This feedback is to ensure the intentions of the bill supports the aspirations of First Nations communities in South Australia,” he said.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister Kyam Maher and Dale Agius, Commissioner for First Nations Voice to parliament and the Commissioner's engagement report. Picture: Roy VanDerVegt

Under the model, people would only be allowed to vote for members within the region that they live, and would need to be enrolled with the Australian Electoral Commission to do so.

However, to nominate and stand for the Voice, you can either nominate from wherever you are on the electoral roll, or wherever your First Nations country is.

Mr Maher said the first election would be a stand-alone, however, after that, Voice elections would run at the same time as state elections, with members serving four year terms.

Shadow Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Josh Teague did not say whether he would support the First Nations Voice Bill yet to be put forward by Mr Maher, but did talk about the Aboriginal Representative Bill 2022 that was introduced to parliament in July.

The bill was created by the Liberal party under former Premier Steven Marshall, which would have also given a voice to Indigenous South Australians, and was not supported by the opposition at the time.