 Australia is one of the few countries that uses compulsory preferential voting for our elections. But what is it? Let's look at how it works in the House of Representatives. On your green ballot paper, you must rank all the candidates, otherwise your vote won't be counted. Number one for your first choice, number two for your second choice and so on. When the votes are tallyed, if no candidate obtains more than 50% of first preference votes, then the one with the lowest number of votes is eliminated. The votes for that candidate are then distributed amongst the remaining candidates, according to second preferences. If there is still no one with a simple majority, the second last candidate is eliminated and their votes are redistributed as well. This continues until a candidate achieves a simple majority. The idea is that preferential voting results in an elected candidate who more closely represents the will of the people. So when you're voting, consider how your preferences might flow, as that could have a big impact on who gets elected.