Information resources

Below you will find some of the educational material produced by the Electoral Commission SA. They are listed in order of accessibility level from easy, to medium, and research level material.


2018 State Election resources

Title Pages Description Level
EasyRead Guide 2 - Enrolling to Vote 12 An easy read publication that covers the enrolment process. Designed for young people,  people with low literacy, and people with intellectual disability. Easy
EasyRead Guide 1 - The Three Levels of Government 12 An easy read publication that covers the three levels of government in South Australia and why they’re important. Designed for young people,  people with low literacy and people with intellectual disability. Easy
EasyRead Guide 3 - Voting at State Elections  16 An easy read publication that covers voting and how to vote at state elections in South Australia. Designed for young people,  people with low literacy and people with intellectual disability. Easy
Voting matters brochure: enrolling to vote in South Australia 2  A short two-sided pamphlet that you can print. Medium
Voting matters brochure: enrolling and voting for new Australian citizens 2 A short two-sided pamphlet that you can print. Medium
Voting matters brochure: the three levels of government 2 A short two-sided pamphlet that you can print. Medium
Storyboard poster on what to do at the polling booth 1 A comic book-style one page poster. Easy


Fact sheets

Title Pages Description Level
The Writ 2 Explains the official document known as the Writ. This document is crucial to State elections because it outlines the timeframe for all of the key events. This fact sheet discusses how the Writ has changed since it was first issued in 1855. Medium
SA's first fully elected Parliament 6 About the first fully-elected two-house parliament in 1857. This fact sheet details all of the laws passed and electoral processes that allowed the election to happen. Details on enrolment, voting, and results are included. Medium


Research publications

Title Pages Description Level
History of South Australian elections 1857-2006, volume 1 363 This publication reports the results of the elections held for the South Australian parliament since it was inaugurated in 1857 to the 2006 general election. It is the first ever compilation of the results of all South Australian parliamentary elections and is a valuable resource for those interested in the electoral and political history of South Australia. Volume 1 presents results for the House of Assembly election results. Research
History of South Australian elections 1857-2006, volume 2 313 This publication reports the results of the elections held for the South Australian parliament since it was inaugurated in 1857 to the 2006 general election. It is the first ever compilation of the results of all South Australian parliamentary elections and is a valuable resource for those interested in the electoral and political history of South Australia. Volume 2 presents results for the Legislative Council election results and a list of candidates for both houses. Research
Community access to the electoral processes in South Australia since 1850 230 This detailed research report by Dr Dean Jaensch outlines the inaugural Acts in the 1850s that established the electoral structure and processes for representative government in South Australia. It traces the development within the legislature of access by the community to representative democratic and responsible government. Research
Analysis of informal ballot papers for Port Adelaide and Ramsay by-elections 2012 14 This research series report analyses the level of informality and the categories of informality at the 2012 Port Adelaide and Ramsay by-elections. It provides a comparison with informality for these districts at the 2010 State election. Some of the factors which may impact on informality at the by-elections are also considered. Research
South Australian electoral boundary redistributions 1851-2016 21 This Research Series publication outlines the establishment of South Australia's first electoral districts in 1851, variations in redistribution arrangements since that time, and the establishment of the Electoral Districts Boundaries Commission in 1975. It summarises boundary reviews and proposals between 1851 and 2016. Research
Returning Officers and their responsibilities 1851-2015 38 A description of the historic and current role of Returning Officers, including the impact of early Returning Officers such as William Boothby, who was the Returning Officer for South Australia from 1855 to 1903 and was influential in establishing and progressively reforming the electoral framework. This Research Series report also lists those who served as Returning Officers in South Australia in the period 1855 to 2015. Research
South Australian By-Elections 1851-2015 21 This research series publication outlines the reasons for and timing of by-elections in both of South Australia's houses of parliament, as well as listing all by-elections from 1857-2015. It also describes the role of the Court of Disputed Returns and lists their decisions to date. Research
Report on optional preferential voting 2003-2004 14 This research series report was produced in response to a number of queries about the impact and incidence of optional preferential voting. It describes the full preferential voting system used for the South Australian House of Assembly elections, and compares this with other elections conducted by the State Electoral Office that involved a single vacancy and the option for electors to allocate preferences.  Research
South Australian referenda 16 This Research Series publication outlines the process for enacting a South Australian referendum and analyses the 12 proposals that have been put to electors in the nine South Australian referenda conducted between 1896 and 1991. Research
History of Local Government electoral provisions in SA 29 This research series report traces the development of an electoral framework for a representative Local Government structure. It considers the provisions in Local Government legislation passed by the South Australian Parliament from 1840-2003 that relate to Council boundaries, the franchise and the voters roll, and Local Government election processes. Research


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