Dozens of candidates in the upcoming Super Saturday by-elections will declare biographical information about their parents and grandparents on Monday, ahead of the opening of early voting this week.
The Australian Electoral Commission has received 48 nominations in total for the seats of Perth, Fremantle, Braddon, Mayo and Longman – which will head to the polls on July 28.
This is the first time candidates have been asked to fill out the checklist in an Australian election.
The system was introduced the wake of the dual citizenship scandal, which saw around a dozen politicians kicked out of parliament under Section 44 of the Constitution within a year.
Polling suggests some of the by-elections, particularly in the Tasmanian set of Braddon, will be decided in close results.
If a candidate chooses to complete the checklist and provides consent it will be published on the AEC website.
But a candidate can complete the checklist and request that it not be published.
In any case, the AEC will publish information on whether it received the checklist, whether consent was given to publish it, and whether any additional documentation was submitted to support the candidate's eligibility under section 44 of the Constitution.
Section 44 bans from parliament people who are dual citizens, have been convicted of an offence punishable by one or more years in jail, are an undischarged bankrupt or insolvent, hold a public service job or have a financial interest in a contract or other agreement with the Commonwealth public service.
- Additional reporting by AAP.
