‘Another political run not out of the question’ for Julian Assange

Julian Assange would likely not face constitutional hurdles if he wanted to run for parliament on his return to Australia.

Julian Assange appeared via video link from London to launch his Senate bid in 2013. Picture: AAP

Legal experts say ­Julian Assange would be unlikely to face constitutional hurdles if he were to run for parliament after his return to Australia.

Assange has, in the past, run for the Senate under the WikiLeaks Party.

The WikiLeaks founder touched down in Australia on Wednesday night as a free man after pleading guilty in a US court. As part of a plea deal, Assange pleaded guilty to violating the US Espionage Act over his role in the publication of troves of classified military and diplomatic documents. His sentence was covered by the time he had already served in a London prison while resisting extradition to the US.

Section 44 of the Constitution lists grounds under which a person can be disqualified from parliament. One of those is if that person “has been convicted and is under sentence, or subject to be sentenced, for any offence punishable under the law of the commonwealth or of a state by imprisonment for one year or longer”.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange gives thumbs up after arriving at Canberra Airport in on June 26.

Constitutional law experts said it was an open question as to whether offences committed outside of the country fell under the provision but said that given reporting that Assange had agreed to a plea deal that covered his imprisonment already served, he would not be disqualified by the provision.

“Section 44(ii) applies only to a person who has been convicted and is under sentence and Assange hasn’t been convicted of anything,” Monash University constitutional law expert Luke Beck said.

“There’s an interesting legal question about whether conduct that would amount to an Australian offence counts even if they were convicted under a foreign country but the answer to that is probably not, but we don’t know.

“And even if it does count, once somebody has served their time, they’re free to run.”

Former Australian Catholic University vice-chancellor Greg Craven concurred. “It’s an obscure question,” Professor Craven said. “Assange would not be convicted of an ­offence punishable under a commonwealth law and therefore he would be entitled to run for and be elected to either house of parliament.”