{"id":"election-of-senators-act-1903","name":"Election of Senators Act 1903","slug":"election-of-senators-act-1903","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":30504,"registerId":"wa-election-of-senators-act-1903-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Election of Senators Act 1903","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nElection of Senators Act 1903\n\nWestern Australia\n\nElection of Senators Act 1903\n\nContents\n\n1. Short title 1\n\n2. Power to fix dates 1\n\n3. Limits within which dates may be fixed 1\n\n4. Dates to be specified in writ 2\n\n5. Time for nomination 2\n\n6. Polling places 2\n\n7. Hours of poll 3\n\n8. Power to extend times 3\n\n9. Communication may be by wire 3\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 4\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nElection of Senators Act 1903\n\nAn Act to provide for the election of Senators for Western Australia to the Senate of the Commonwealth.\n\n##### 1. Short title\n\nThis Act may be cited as the *Election of Senators Act 1903* 1.\n\n##### 2. Power to fix dates\n\nFor the purpose of the election of Senators for this State to the Senate of the Parliament of the Commonwealth, the Governor may, by proclamation, fix the dates for —\n\n(a) the close of the rolls;\n\n(b) the nomination of candidates;\n\n(c) the polling; and\n\n(d) the return of the writ,\n\nand so far as any of such times may be mentioned in the writ for the election, they shall be in accordance with the times fixed by such proclamation.\n\n[Section 2 inserted: No. 86 of 1984 s. 3.]\n\n##### 3. Limits within which dates may be fixed\n\n(1) The date fixed for the close of the rolls shall be the date specified in the *Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918* (Commonwealth) section 155.\n\n[(1a) deleted]\n\n(2) Subject to subsection (3) the date fixed for the nomination of the candidates shall not be less than 10 nor more than 27 days after the date of the writ.\n\n(3) Where a candidate for an election dies, after being nominated and before 12 o’clock noon on the day fixed by the writ as the date of nomination for the election, the day fixed as the day of nomination for the election shall, except for the purposes of subsection (4), be taken to be the day next succeeding the day so fixed.\n\n(4) The date fixed for the polling shall not be less than 23 days nor more than 31 days after the date of nomination.\n\n(5) The day fixed for the polling shall be a Saturday.\n\n(6) The date fixed for the return of the writ shall not be more than 100 days after the date of the writ.\n\n[Section 3 inserted: No. 86 of 1984 s. 4; amended: No. 6 of 1989 s. 4; No. 16 of 2001 s. 4; No. 20 of 2007 s. 4; No. 26 of 2015 s. 4.]\n\n##### 4. Dates to be specified in writ\n\nThe writ shall bear the date of the day of issue and the date fixed for the close of the rolls, the nomination of candidates, the polling and the return of the writ shall be specified therein.\n\n##### 5. Time for nomination\n\nNomination must be made at any time after the issue of the writ and before 12 o’clock noon on the day of nomination.\n\n##### 6. Polling places\n\nThe polling shall be taken at all polling places within the State appointed under the law of the Commonwealth for the time being in force for the regulation of Parliamentary elections.\n\n##### 7. Hours of poll\n\nThe poll shall be open at 8.00 a.m. and shall not close until all electors in the polling booth at 6.00 p.m. and desiring to vote have voted.\n\n[Section 7 amended: No. 27 of 1912 s. 4; No. 86 of 1984 s. 6.]\n\n##### 8. Power to extend times\n\nBefore or after the day appointed for the election, the Governor may, by notice published in the *Government Gazette*, provide for extending the time for holding the election or for returning the writ, or meeting any difficulty which might otherwise interfere with the due course of the election, and any provision so made shall be valid and sufficient.\n\n[Section 8 amended: No. 6 of 1989 s. 5.]\n\n##### 9. Communication may be by wire\n\nIn all cases where it is impracticable to communicate any writ, proclamation, or notice by post without occasioning undue delay, any telegraphic advice communicated in the ordinary course shall suffice for all purposes of this Act as if the matter telegraphed had been communicated in manner provided by this Act.\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of the *Election of Senators Act 1903* and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table. The table also contains information about any reprint.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Short title** | **Number and year** | **Assent** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| *Election of Senators Act 1903* | 11 of 1903 | 11 Dec 1903 | 11 Dec 1903 |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 1912* | 27 of 1912 | 27 Sep 1912 | 27 Sep 1912 |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 1984* | 86 of 1984 | 29 Nov 1984 | 29 Nov 1984 (see s. 2) |\n| **Reprint of the *Election of Senators Act 1903* as at 13 Jul 1987** (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 1989* | 6 of 1989 | 23 Oct 1989 | 23 Oct 1989 (see s. 2) |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 2001* | 16 of 2001 | 28 Aug 2001 | 28 Aug 2001 (see s. 2) |\n| **Reprint 2: The *Election of Senators Act 1903* as at 16 May 2003** (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 2007* | 20 of 2007 | 4 Sep 2007 | s. 1 and 2: 4 Sep 2007 (see s. 2(a));   Act other than s. 1 and 2: 5 Sep 2007 (see s. 2(b)) |\n| *Election of Senators Amendment Act 2015* | 26 of 2015 | 2 Oct 2015 | s. 1 and 2: 2 Oct 2015 (see s. 2(a));   Act other than s. 1 and 2: 3 Oct 2015 (see s. 2(b)) |\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose of providing procedural rules for Western Australian Senate elections. While amended multiple times since 1903 (in 1912, 1984, 1989, 2001, 2007, and 2015), these amendments have updated specific timeframes and technical details without expanding the Act's scope beyond election administration."},"complexity_factors":["Only 9 short sections with straightforward procedural rules","Minimal defined terms (only references to external Commonwealth legislation)","Simple conditional logic limited to subsections (3) and (4) regarding candidate death scenarios","Some cross-referencing to the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 for the roll closure date","Historical amendments tracked but do not complicate the current text structure","No nested exceptions or highly conditional provisions beyond the single candidate death exception"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a Western Australian law that sets the rules for holding elections to choose the state's Senators for the Australian federal Parliament.\n\n**What it does:**\n- Gives the Governor of Western Australia the power to set specific dates for each stage of a Senate election: when voter rolls close, when candidates must be nominated, when voting day is, and when election results must be returned\n- Sets strict time limits between these stages (for example, voting day must be 23-31 days after nominations close, and must be held on a Saturday)\n- Requires that all these dates be written on the official election document (called a \"writ\")\n- Specifies that nominations must happen between when the writ is issued and noon on nomination day\n- Says voting happens at all federal polling places across Western Australia\n- Sets voting hours from 8am to 6pm (with anyone already in line at 6pm allowed to vote)\n- Allows the Governor to extend deadlines or fix problems that might disrupt the election\n- Permits urgent messages about the election to be sent by telegram (telegraph wire) if post would be too slow\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Western Australian voters electing federal Senators\n- Candidates running for the Senate\n- The Governor of Western Australia and election officials\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis law ensures Senate elections in Western Australia follow a predictable, fair timeline and gives the state flexibility to handle emergencies or delays while keeping the election process running smoothly."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act's core purpose has remained the same since 1903: to provide for the election of Senators for Western Australia by empowering the Governor to fix dates and set procedural rules. Amendments have mainly updated time limits and references to federal law, but have not expanded the Act's scope beyond its original intent."},"complexity_factors":["Very short Act with only 9 sections","Minimal defined terms","Simple conditional logic (e.g., candidate death triggers alternative nomination date)","Limited cross-references to Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 (section 155)","Straightforward time limits and powers","No nested exceptions or complex structures"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act sets the rules for electing Senators from Western Australia to the Australian Senate. It gives the Governor the power to set the key dates for a Senate election, including when the electoral roll closes, when candidates can be nominated, when voting happens, and when the result must be declared. These dates must stay within certain limits set by the Act. For example, voting day must be a Saturday, and the time between nomination and polling must be at least 23 days but no more than 31 days. The Act also says that voting happens at all polling places used for other federal elections in WA, and the polls are open from 8am to 6pm, but anyone already in line at 6pm can still vote. If there are problems, the Governor can extend deadlines or deal with difficulties. This law is about the mechanics of running an election, not about who can vote or how votes are counted (those are in federal law)."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as no legislative text was provided. The submission contained only a broken webpage error message from the Western Australian Parliamentary Counsel's Office website, with no substantive legal content to analyse."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was retrievable — only an error/redirect page was provided","Cannot assess structural complexity, defined terms, cross-references, or operative provisions without actual content","Complexity score of 1 reflects the impossibility of analysis, not simplicity of the law itself"],"plain_english_summary":"## Election of Senators Act 1903 — No Content Available\n\nUnfortunately, **no actual legislative content could be retrieved** for this Act. The page hosting the Western Australian legislation has been taken down or moved due to system upgrades, and only a broken-link error message was returned.\n\n**What we do know from the title:**\n- This is a **1903 Western Australian Act** dealing with the election of Senators (the representatives Western Australia sends to the Federal Senate in Canberra).\n- Given its age, it likely dealt with early procedural rules for how WA conducted Senate elections following Federation in 1901.\n- Much of its original content may have been **superseded by Commonwealth electoral law** (federal law), which now predominantly governs Senate elections across all states.\n\n**What this means for you:** Without access to the actual text, no reliable legal analysis can be provided. If you need this legislation, try searching the [Western Australian Parliamentary Counsel's Office](https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au) directly, or the [Federal Register of Legislation](https://www.legislation.gov.au)."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903","history":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903/history","analysis":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/election-of-senators-act-1903/documents"}}