New South Wales State Elections

A month after I moved to my apartment I got this letter from the Australian government which asked whether I (the new tenant) was an eligible voter (I checked "no" and mailed the letter back). I was quite impressed with the efficiency of the government in quickly tracking down potential voters. It certainly showed that there was "teeth" behind the legal requirement for Australians to vote, I mean how could they fine Australians who didn't vote if they didn't know where to send the bill.

Since I'd checked the "no" box stating I was ineligible to vote, I was surprised to get campaign mail.

Side-note... Speaking of what I get in the mail (or rather what I don't). In the 2 years I've lived here I have not received a single credit card application in the mail (I got tons in the US). I wanted to apply for an Australia MC/Visa card that would get me Qantas airline milage but I can't apply as I'm not a permanent resident. What a crazy rule!



Here are photos of two pieces of the campaign mail I received. Clover Moore is the current representative of Sydney and the second flier looks like a hybrid of a tacky car sales brochure and the front page of the National Enquirer. Could they be more different?