Premier Roger Cook says a visit by Anthony Albanese this week will not detract from state issues, but the WA Electoral Commission has warned of confusion with two ballots ahead.
Premier Roger Cook says a visit by Anthony Albanese this week will not detract from state issues, but the WA Electoral Commission has warned of confusion with two ballots ahead.
The Prime Minister is expected to touch down in the Kimberley and then jet to Perth this week, as part of a flying ‘blitz’ targeted at marginal electorates across the country.
The date of the federal election is yet to be decided, but it could fall within weeks of the state ballot – to be held at a cost around $40 million on March 8.
The state vote is locked in, but would need to move if Mr Albanese called a federal election on the same day.
WAEC electoral commissioner Robert Kennedy told a media briefing today that the organisation was aware that a state and federal vote within weeks of one another could impact its ability to cut through with its communication.
The Western Australian Electoral Commission and the Australian Electoral Commission are separate entities, but have been in regular contact over the prospect of a clash or near-miss.
“One of the big concerns from my point of view is that our message gets lost in amongst the federal discussions, and it makes it hard to get the message out to electors,” he said.
“They get confused.
“Even at the moment, people don’t always understand that there are two bodies running two different elections – it is a risk, but it’s one that we’re comfortable on, that we’ve looked into and we’ve got some things in place.”
Mr Kennedy did not disclose a dollar figure which would be incurred should the state election have to move, but acknowledged there would be “additional costs”.
There was no such concern over voter confusion from Mr Cook, who said this morning that he did not believe the prime minister’s visit to WA or the potential for two elections in a month would puzzle the public.
“I think everyone understands the difference between a Western Australian election and a national election,” he said.
“They’re smart. They understand these things.
“We’ll campaign on state issues, and we’ll continue to make sure that we provide cost of living relief, that we continue to invest in housing and our great health system.
“We’ll undertake a campaign which is about state issues and which the Western Australian people can take attention of.”
Mr Cook said he remained in the dark as to when Mr Albanese would call the federal election.
“There’s only one person in the country that knows when the next federal election is, and that’s the Prime Minister,” he said.
Mr Albanese’s visit will follow stops in Queensland and the Northern Territory.
The WAEC also revealed a focus on combating misinformation ahead of the 2025 state election today, and said it was in the process of developing a fact-checking resource for voters.
The commission has identified electoral misinformation as a trend in elections globally.
“What we’ve seen in other jurisdictions is that it affects right across the spectrum of electors,” Mr Kennedy said of electoral misinformation.
The WAEC does not have the power to force political candidates to issue public corrections but can counter misinformation in the public sphere should candidates make inaccurate claims.
