BrisbaneTimes.com.au
Australians will be able to enrol online after the Federal Court ruled in favour of activist group GetUp! in its action against the Australian Electoral Commission.
The group took the commission to court after concern was expressed about an online voting enrolment site it created in July.
But today Federal Court Justice Nye Perram ruled the test case of 19-year-old Sophie Trevitt, who enrolled on the GetUp! website OzEnrol, was legal.
'Historic' win ... GetUp! national director Simon Sheikh.
GetUp! national director Simon Sheikh called the win "historic".
"Today's decision vindicates the process of online enrolment," Mr Sheikh told reporters.
"We know that we pay our taxes online, that we do our banking online and we should be able to enrol to vote online."
He said GetUp! would be campaigning to allow online enrolments in all future elections, starting with Victoria's state election in November.
"The AEC's next moves are up to them. We'll be pushing the case for online voting vigorously so that it can be in place in time for the Victorian state election."
It is the second win the group has had in court in two weeks – last Friday the High Court ruled Howard government laws that closed electoral rolls on the day writs for an election were issued were invalid.
In a majority judgment, the full court struck out the laws brought in by the Coalition government in 2006 that cut the deadline from seven days to one for enrolment and three days for a change of details.
