Why didn't Kyam Maher Vote in his Own First Nations Election?
O what a tangled web we weave
When first we practice to deceive
Sir Walter Scott
In April/May of 2024, the Hon. Nicola Centofanti MLC, Leader of the Liberal Opposition in the Legislative Council of South Australia, led the questioning of the “proud Aboriginal man” sitting on the government benches opposite her, the state Attorney General, the Hon Kyam Maher MLC.
She enquired into his voting history during the SA State Voice To Parliament elections, an election open to all the “First Nations persons” of South Australia.
On 9 April 2024 she asked the minister:
Figure 1 - Source: Hansard SA Parliament 9 Apr 2024
Centofanti had finally elicited a response from “proud Aboriginal man” Kyam Maher as to whether he had voted in his own SA State Voice elections. His answer was a perplexing, No, “I didn’t cast a vote.”
In a follow up question by the Liberals on 2 May 2024, he told the Hon Laura Henderson MLC the reasoning for his decision not to cast a vote as one of SA’s ‘First Nations people.’
Figure 2 - Source: Hansard SA Parliament
The minister replied:
“As I have said, my advice was that in state elections, by convention, the Governor does not vote, and I made the decision, as the person who is responsible for the administration of the legislation and ultimately that act, that I would not vote in these elections.”
The public might find the minister’s reasoning perplexing - Isn’t Kyam Maher, as SA Attorney General, ‘responsible for the administration’ of all of SA’s legislation? Does that mean he has ‘made the decision’ not to vote in any of the South Australian, state general elections?
Maher continued his reasoning with:
“…I very much look forward to my participation in the First Nations Voice voting in years to come when I am not the minister responsible.”
Is he saying the same with regard to the normal state general elections? Is he not voting now for his own Labor party - indeed even for himself in his own seat - because he has ministerial portfolios? If not, has he received a penalty notice?
His reasons for not voting seem excessively restrictive given that his own Labor leader, Peter Malinauskas told South Australians that all they needed to do to qualify for the SA State Voice elections was to “sign a Stat Dec” (see video below).
Or is there another reason as to why Maher doesn’t want to ‘sign a stat. dec.’ confirming he is an Aboriginal - a ‘First Nations person’ - and then be free to vote in his own First Nations Voice elections?
Is Kyam Maher ‘not-mistaken’ anymore about being Aboriginal?
Notes
No further entries in the SA Hansard regarding this topic were found, as of 13 April 2025, so it would appear that the above reflects the current thinking of Kyam Maher.
Even more perplexing is the fact that Maher has entertained the idea of self-appointing himself onto the same political level as the Governor. If he acts in a legal capacity on the basis that he has the same standing as the Governor, isn’t that ‘treason’? Have we just witnessed a ‘soft coup’, where the Attorney General has just assumed some of the powers and responsibilities of the Governor? Will Maher just stop there or keep going, as he sees fit, to act like the Governor? Food for thought in these interesting times of the Aboriginalisation of Australia.
