WA Electoral Commission receives ‘hundreds’ of boundary change objections following ‘Mid West’ uproar

Hundreds of objections to the proposed electoral boundary changes have been received with the submission period now closed and objections to be published online “as soon as practical”. The Office of Electoral Distribution Commissioners has proposed to merge the coastal parts of Merome Beard’s North West Central electorate, sprawling from Kalbarri to Onslow and inland to WA’s border, with the Moore seat held by Nationals leader Shane Love. The new seat, proposed to be named Mid West, will include areas near Perth such as Gingin and Chittering, with the remote Gascoyne and Murchison as well as Mid West and Wheatbelt agricultural areas. Stakeholders and community had until Monday, August 21 at 5pm to submit an objection to the proposed changes, stripping regional WA of an electorate to accommodate a new seat in Perth. Local government representatives in the Mid West had made their views on the changes clear, with most, including Northampton, Irwin, Mingenew, Perenjori, Yalgoo, Morawa, Mt Magnet and Shark Bay Shires planning to submit an objection. A WA Electoral Commission spokesperson confirmed they had received 92 submissions on Monday, August 14, but on Friday said submissions had surged, with objections “now in the hundreds”. The spokesperson said there was a large increase in the number of objections received in the final days of the submission period. “It is usual that more objections are received in the final days of the 30 day period for the lodgment of objections,” the spokesperson said. The electoral boundary review will be conducted by three independent Electoral Distribution Commissioners, who will make a final decision before December. The Electoral Commission will publish the objections to the 2023 distribution website as soon as practical.