WA premier seeks advice about a possible early federal poll clashing with state election

Western Australian Labor premier Roger Cook has  asked for advice about  the implications of a possible March federal election clashing with the state poll.  

The WA election is on March 8.  The state has fixed terms.

The Albanese government could hold its election in March, April or (at the latest) May. Federal terms are not fixed.

Federally, WA is a vital state for both sides of politics. Labor won several seats there in 2022 and Albanese has visited the state constantly since then. The opposition is counting on getting back some ground there.

Cook said on Monday: “We have to be ready for any contingency.

"We have limited ability to switch our election if the federal election comes in over the top of that.

"So  […] we’re doing a lot of work at the moment and the [state] electoral commission is doing a lot of work, just understanding what some of those complexities might be in the event that the federal government decides to have an election close to ours.”

The WA electoral act prohibits a state election on the same day as a federal election.

In “exceptional circumstances” the state election date can be postponed briefly, if the premier and state opposition leader agree.

The issue would not just be the actual polling day but how staff could cope if the two elections were within a week or two of each other.

On the present timetable, federal parliament resumes in February, and March 25 has been set for an early budget.

Albanese has referred to the planned budget several times. Last week he referred to legislation being debated by parliament in February.

Meanwhile the Australian Electoral Commission has again ruled out two people being able to nominate as dual candidates.

The AEC said in a Monday statement that it would be required  by the Commonwealth Electoral Act to reject any nomination made by multiple  individuals for one  candidacy.

Two professional women, Bronwen Bock and Lucy  Bradlow, say they want to job share a Victorian Senate position. They first aimed to run in Higgins to show politics could be “done differently”. But the seat was abolished in the redistribution; they  then turned their attention to the Senate.

The AEC has said multiple times only one person can nominate for a single seat.

In Monday’s statement it said the legislated timeframes in a federal election were “incredibly tight”, and resolving legal interpretations and disputes in this period  was “incredibly challenging”.

“Also, if the election was to be held in late May 2025, delays in the election process may impact on the AEC returning the writs before 30 June 2025. This may result in delays for incoming Senators being able to take their seats." 

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.