The Malinauskas Labor Government's world leading legislation to get money out of politics has passed State Parliament, paving the way for the political donation ban to take effect ahead of the March 2026 State Election.
Delivering on its election commitment, the Government secured support from the Liberal Party, Greens and other members of the crossbench to pass the Electoral (Accountability and Integrity) Amendment Bill 2024.
The legislation is designed to strengthen public confidence in democracy by prohibiting the giving and receiving of electoral donations and gifts to registered political parties, members of Parliament and candidates.
Strict penalties will apply for those seeking to circumvent the donation ban.
The new law imposes mandatory expenditure caps on parties, candidates and third parties.
Third parties, which include businesses, unions and think tanks, will also face limits on the value of donations.
The legislation provides for a restructure and mandatory application of the existing public funding model, which is based on the number of votes received at previous elections.
It will also include advance payments to new entrants to the political process, such as independent candidates.
To further ensure new entrants are not disadvantaged, they will be entitled to receive donations of up to $5,000 and will also be subject to a spending cap.
All candidates will continue to be able to make use of volunteers.
The legislation was crafted taking into account advice and feedback from constitutional experts, the Solicitor General, the Electoral Commission, a panel of experts, democracy groups and participants in the political process.
This significant reform is complex and may well be subject to legal challenge, including via the High Court.
The new law will take effect on 1 July next year, so will apply in the lead up to the March 2026 general election.
A statutory review of the bill's operation will be completed within 18 months of the poll.
Additional reforms to ban unsolicited robocalls and regulate the use of artificially generated electoral content, or deepfakes, have also passed State Parliament this week.
Further amendments include allowing pre-poll votes to be counted on polling day, banning the display of federal electoral corflutes and providing telephone assisted voting for sight and motor-impaired electors.
As put by Peter Malinauskas
South Australia has a rich tradition of leading the world in democratic reforms, and this is yet a significant day.
This reform is not in my Government's immediate political interests. But it is the right thing to do.
South Australians rightly expect that their politicians should be focusing on the issues that matter to them, not spending their days chasing dollars.
This legislation has been carefully crafted on the best advice of experts and in close consultation with democracy groups to ensure we have a system which is fair and workable.
As put by Dan Cregan
This reform sets out to end the pervasive impact of political donations in our electoral system and reverse an emerging trust deficit seen worldwide.
Decisions taken by members of parliament must always be made in the public interest and a ban will prevent donors from enjoying greater influence or access.
It recognises the constitutional guarantee of freedom of political communication and is calibrated to avoid placing an unconstitutional burden on that freedom.
