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Secret ballot

The Secret ballot was pioneered in the former Australian colony, now state of South Australia in the early 1850's. Today the practice is so commonplace that most voters would not consider that any other method might be used. Although the colony of Victoria enacted legislation for secret ballots on March 19 1856, credit is generally given to South Australian Electoral Commissioner William Boothby for creating the system finally enacted into law in South Australia on April 2 of that same year (two weeks later).

The system provides for pre-printed ballot papers listing the name of each candidate together with a box next to each name for the voter to record his/her voting preference. Provision is made at the voting place for the voter to record his/her preference in secret. These ballot papers are then placed in sealed boxes, later emptied for counting. The basic purpose of this process is to allow the voter to record their choice without intimidation.

The system is one means of achieving the goal of political privacy. Secret ballots are suitable for many different voting systems.

In the United States the practice is known by the name "Australian ballot". The first President of the United States elected under the Australian ballot was president Grover Cleveland in 1892.

Chronology of Introduction




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