An insiders guide to how-to-vote cards

Once upon a time, I used to be a member of a now largely defunct minor Australian political party. And for a couple of elections I was one of those annoying people who stand outside the polling booth handing out how-to-vote cards.

A quick primer on how-to-vote cards:

Australia has preferential voting. When filling out a ballot paper, voters don't merely vote for one candidate, but rank all of the available candidates in order of preference. This means that you can support an unpopular candidate but still influence which of the front-runners will ultimately win. This is because if your first choice can't win, then your second choice counts as a full vote. And if your second choice can't win, then your third choice counts as a full vote, and so on.

That's how it is for the House of Representatives election, anyway. It's more complex for the Senate, although still a preferential system.

With preferential voting, voters are free to distribute preferences however they like. However, the political parties also like to make recommendations. So on election day, each party organises to have people handing out how-to-vote cards outside polling booths around Australia. These how-to-vote cards are a last ditch attempt to impress voters with a nice photo of the candidate, win their vote, and influence their preferences.

Now, the electoral act prohibits any campaigning within the designated polling booth. Therefore, how-to-vote card handerouterors (is that the term?) have to lurk outside the entrance. There's usually half a dozen at each polling location. Waiting, ready to pounce. The poor voters have to run the gauntlet.

In my experience as a handerouteror, there are 4 kinds of voters when it comes to how-to-vote cards:

1) No card McGees - these voters keep their heads down and try to run the gauntlet, refusing all how-to-vote cards.

2) Angry no card McGees - these voters refuse all cards, whilst abusing the how-to-vote-card handerouterers ("You're corrupt bloody mongrels, the lot of yehs. I'm not voting for any of yehs. Grumble grumble...")

3) Proud Partisans - refuse all cards except that of their favourite party. These voters are happy to make their allegiance known.

4) Aquiscents - take a card from all of the parties, not wanting to offend anyone.

5) Recyling Acquiescents - take a card from all of the parties, then return them on the way out, in the interests of recycling.

Why do voters have to put up with this? And aren't how-to-vote cards a huge waste of paper? Why not just change the electoral act to allow parties to poster their recommendations on the wall inside the booth? Why not just have a copy of each card available in each of the little cardboard cubicles?

There's a good answer to that actually. The major parties can afford to pay people to hand out cards at every single booth in Australia. However, the minor parties, not having much money, have to rely on party members and volunteers (like me) to hand out cards, and there's just not enough to go around. Thus, minor parties can only afford to have how-to-vote cards at some booths. The minor parties would much prefer to just post voting recommendations inside the booths. But it's only the major parties that have the power to change the electoral act.

Surprisingly, how-to-vote cards make quite a difference. My minor party did much better at booths where its how-to-vote cards were handed out.

But I wonder what effect the quintessential polling booth sausage sizzle has on election outcomes? Factor that in Antony.

P.S. For any would be handerouterors out there, a tip: the spot closest to the entrance is the best. Yours will be the last card they get, and therefore will likely be on top of the pile.