PREMIER Mark McGowan this afternoon advised the Western Australian Governor Kim Beazley to issue the writs for the State election on Saturday, March 13.
The writs direct the Electoral Commissioner to proceed with elections in all Legislative Assembly districts and Legislative Council regions.
As part of Western Australia’s fixed-term elections, it is a legislative requirement for the writs to be issued today.
A government statement said Mr McGowan had also directed the acting director general of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet to implement the Caretaker Conventions across the WA public sector.
“Under the Caretaker Conventions, efforts are made to ensure that decisions are not taken which would bind an incoming government and limit its freedom of action,” the statement said.
“Due to the current Covid-19 State of Emergency, the Caretaker Conventions include clear guidelines to ensure the government and the State Disaster Council can continue to function in the interests of the Western Australian community.
“The Premier will continue to participate in National Cabinet, as other state and territory leaders have done during the pandemic.
“The state government and the WA Electoral Commission will continue to monitor the impact of Covid-19 in Western Australia to ensure the 2021 State election is Covid-safe.
One the Western Australian Electoral Commission website electoral commissioner Robert Kennedy said people can enrol to vote or update their details until the closure of the rolls at 6pm, Thursday, February 11.
About 1.7 million Western Australians are eligible to cast a vote and that number is expected to grow as the election gets closer.
Mr Kennedy said the Electoral Commission was also asking people to plan how, when and where they are going to vote.
“There will be more voting options than just voting at a local polling place on Election Day – these include postal and early in-person voting,” he said.
“Anyone concerned about voting in person can apply for a postal vote.”
“This can be done online at www.elections.wa.gov.au/pva from as early as February 4 or people can contact the Commission’s Call Centre (13 63 06) from this date to have an application form posted out.”
“There will also be extensive opportunities for early voting: around 70 early voting centres will operate from Wednesday, February 24 and there is no requirement for electors to provide a reason for voting early, either in person or by post.”
