What in the World - How does compulsory voting work?

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Election season in Australia is drawing to a close with the re-election of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Labor Party. Around 18 million people in the country are eligible to vote, and many of them turned up to the polls as it is a legal obligation to do so. If you fail to turn up, you can face a fine. So what’s it like to vote in an election, when you have to? And how is enforced? BBC’s Australia correspondent Katy Watson tells us how it all works.

Compulsory voting is popular across many countries in Latin America, with 13 out of the 33 countries in the region enforcing it. BBC reporter Maria Clara Montoya gives us the details.

We also hear from Shane Singh, a professor at the University of Georgia in the US, about the advantages and disadvantages of compulsory voting.

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Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Mora Morrison, Emily Horler and Benita Barden
Editor: Verity Wilde

Published on Wednesday, 7th May 2025.

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