FAQ

Endorsements are made by stakeholders in an issue. It is a separate type of account that do not have the power to vote, but instead can 'endorse' a solution or proposal, providing their reasons for doing so. Endorsements will be available by 1 April 2019.

In a small community, stakeholders may represent departments, faculties, factions, parties etc. In the government jurisdictional sense, stakeholders will be community groups, NGOs, think tanks, political parties etc.

The reason for endorsements is so you can know where stakeholders within your community stand on the issue and why.

What is NewVote?

NewVote is a nonpartisan nonprofit registered charity.

Our purpose is to enhance and celebrate democracy. In other words, we want to hear what you have to say.

That's why were creating a digital participation platform (essentially, an app).

For more information, read our about us section.

Are you a political party?

No, we’re political, but we’re not party political.

NewVote is a nonpartisan nonprofit organisation and registered charity. We are independent from government, media and the political parties. We provide the technological infrastructure so that all citizens, no matter their view, are provided the opportunity to participate in the political process in a civilised and respectful manner.

What is NewVote's ideology?

The only ideology we have is our belief in democracy. To us democracy means:

Secret, secure voting on a one person, one vote basis;
Citizens having access to factual, balanced information on political issues;
Citizens being heard directly on all political issues; and

You can see more about democracy in our Learning Centre.

We believe technology can assist in making political engagement more accessible and inclusive for everyday citizens.

Currently we are a start-up and just have a small board of directors. When we grow, we will have a board of directors that represents the full spectrum of political beliefs. In this way we will not be “left”, “right” or “centre”. Citizens from any political viewpoint that examine NewVote should find at least one person on the board of directors that resonates with them and that they would trust.

How will citizens benefit from using the NewVote platform?

Citizens will have the opportunity to:

learn about political issues from an evidenced based and balanced information summary
participate in discussions that are respectful and safe
suggest issues, goals and solutions for consideration by other citizens

Most importantly, citizens will have the opportunity to voluntarily vote on political issues, goals and solutions which does not exist currently. To have their voice heard on the issues that matter to them the most every day, instead of once every three or four years

NewVote form a bridge between informed citizens and their politicians. In essence, directly telling politicians what the citizens want them to do.

How will politicians use the NewVote platform?

It gives politicians the opportunity to directly gauge public sentiment on a real-time basis for the first time. It allows them to find out what issues are important to their electorate, and what their electorate want done to solve them.

Will NewVote de-stabilise our democracy?

No, NewVote is designed to work within the existing political system but to enhance it. NewVote strengthens representative democracy and makes it work better for all sides of politics.

We are not making any structural changes to the current political system. We are making representative democracy more representative.

What is the point of the prototype?

The prototype represents our first attempt to make an app that will enhance democracy.

It is a proof of concept to demonstration that the principal of direct and deliberate democracy can be applied to an app to achieve a practical outcome for the community.

The feedback that we on the receive about the prototype from users and stakeholders will be invaluable in making the iOS and Android versions.

FAQ