JEMIMA Williamson-Wong will remain one of Fremantle’s Coastal Ward councillors after a Perth court dismissed complaints about the legitimacy of her election this week.
In the lead up to the 2023 local government elections, the WA Electoral Commission sent out the wrong ballot papers to Fremantle’s Coastal and Central Wards, which were replaced.
Former councillor Marija Vujcic lost out in that election to Cr Williamson-Wong and with the Greater Fremantle Community and Business Association lodged a challenge against the result.
At the Court of Disputed Returns in Perth this week, it was acknowledged that the WAEC’s mistake was “momentous” but that replacement ballots were sent “promptly” and the number of people affected were not “likely to be significant”.
As a result, two complaints against Cr Williamson-Wong and the WAEC were dismissed.
Cr Williamson-Wong says she is “relieved” that the decision was “definitive”, but was critical of the challenge which she says was time-consuming.
“While I am grateful for our democratic process that allows complaints to be heard, I can’t help but reflect on the time and energy this has taken away from other important work,” Ms Williamson-Wong said.
“…not just for me, but also for others affected by the hearing, including the two days of residential tenancies court that had to be vacated for our hearing.”
Cr Williamson-Wong, who was originally represented pro-bono by Hammond Legal but ended up self-representing in court, says she is “excited” that the decision means she can continue her council role.
“Magistrate Darge was clear in his summary of the decision that this is not a case of fraud, but rather an administrative error,” Cr Williamson-Wong said.
“With a legal decision finding that the election was valid, it is my hope that conversations within the community can move from conspiratorial to constructive.”
Speaking to the Herald this week, Ms Vujcic insists the challenge was not a waste of time or money despite costs reaching the “tens of thousands” of dollars across multiple court dates.
She says the challenge should have been mounted from within the council itself, as residents in the affected Coastal and Central wards were impacted by the WAEC’s mistake.
“It was an expensive process… this is a case that mayor [Hannah] Fitzhardinge and the council should have taken up for half of their ratepayers,” Ms Vujcic said.
“That was her job, because if she accepts this standard in the city, then she’s not doing her job.
“It never cost the City anything, never cost Jemima anything… I put my own money up for this, and I’m still proud of it.”
Ms Vujcic brushed off Cr Williamson-Wong’s “conspiratorial” label, saying the process of voting at a local government level was “flawed” and needs “proper reform”.
“There needs to be a marked-off voter registration role that anybody can see who voted… when the evidence came out in this hearing, it was obvious that [the WAEC’s] voter registration rolls were out of date,” Ms Vujcic said.
“Compulsory voting would also go some distance to normalise what happens with the state and federal [elections] and the chain of custody… I do think it leaves things wide open, not conspiracy.
“Jemima knows nothing about this stuff… I learned a hell of a lot because I went through documents she didn’t, and if we don’t start doing that, we are going to have elections challenged again and again.
“The ‘conspiracy’ thing is just fashionable.”
by KATHERINE KRAAYVANGER