McGinty v. Western Australia
Australia High Court
186 C.L.R. 140 (1996)
- Written by Mary Katherine Cunningham, JD
Facts
Article 24 of the Constitution of Australia provided that the House of Representatives must be composed of members directly chosen by the people. Article 24 also provided that a state’s number of members in the House of Representatives must be in proportion to the respective population of the state. Western Australia was divided into multiple electoral districts of varying population. Under the relevant caselaw in 1996, the population of these Western Australian electoral districts could vary up to 20 percent. James McGinty (plaintiff), the opposition leader in Western Australia, filed suit to challenge the apportionment of electoral districts in Western Australia. McGinty argued that the constitutions of Australia and of Western Australia created a system of representative government that provided every legally capable adult citizen with the right to vote and that required each individual’s vote to be equal to the vote of every other person.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Brennan, C.J.)
Dissent (Toohey, J.)
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