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ABC News
ABC News
National
Matt Garrick

Northern Land Council accuses the Australian Electoral Commission of 'failing' Aboriginal voters

The AEC set up a program in 2021 to engage with remote voters. (ABC News: Michael Franchi)

A powerful Northern Territory land council has accused the Australian Electoral Commission of failing Aboriginal people by not engaging more bush voters to have their say at the federal election.

Voter enrolment in the remote NT remains low, at around 70 per cent, and the AEC now has less than one week to convince more people to sign up before enrolments for the May 21 election close.

Northern Land Council chairman Samuel Bush-Blanasi branded the AEC as "discriminatory" and said the organisation had left it too late to attempt to drive voter numbers up in remote communities.

"They've had three years to get out there and start enrolling people from the bush," he said.

"I think it's a failure by the Australian Electoral Commission.

"I see it as a failure, and suggest it's discriminating against Indigenous people that live in the bush, the people that can't vote."

Northern Land Council has released videos urging NT bush voters to enrol for the election. (Supplied: NLC)

Thousands missing from electoral roll

The AEC said there were around 15,000 people missing from the electoral roll living in the remote NT, but the NLC said its research estimated those figures to be much higher, at around 40,000.

The commission acknowledged remote enrolment remained low but defended the organisation's efforts.

"We've worked hard, we continue to work hard," AEC NT manager Geoff Bloom said.

"Everything we can do at the moment is being done, and the outcomes are not meeting everyone's expectations currently, but certainly, it's moving in the right direction."

Mr Bloom says work is being done, despite the low numbers. (ABC News: Michael Franchi)

Mr Bloom said it was incumbent on organisations like the NLC to help the AEC connect with remote community residents and help push the rates higher.

"We've reached out to the Northern Land Council and others for a long period of time," he said.

Indigenous Electoral Participation Program re-established

The AEC faced cuts to its NT staffing base due to a restructure in 2017.

In 2021, the AEC re-established an Indigenous Electoral Participation Program to try and bolster enrolment rate numbers in the remote NT.

Senior engagement officer, Neville Khan, acknowledged bush enrolment rates were "disappointing" but said his program was "a good opportunity to get things right".

Mr Khan says it's disappointing to head into the election with low remote voter enrolment. (ABC News: Michael Franchi)

"It's still relatively new, but we've managed to pull a good team together to start building partnerships and relationships with remote communities to increase the enrolments," Mr Khan said.

Mr Bush-Blanasi welcomed the initiative but questioned why it hadn't been resourced and staffed by the AEC prior to 2021.

The AEC and NLC are both rallying people from the remote NT to sign up and have their chance to vote, in a final effort before enrolments close on Monday.

The NLC has released a series of videos with well-known NT personalities such as ABC broadcaster Charlie King and performer Constantina Bush urging remote residents to have their say.

People from remote communities across Australia cast their ballots at mobile polling stations. (ABC News: Tom Joyner)
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