The ACT will make it as easy as possible for First Nations people to elect members to the territory's voice to parliament in an effort to boost voter turnout, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Minister says.
More polling places will be available this year in an effort to encourage higher voter turnout, which has been identified as a key issue facing the body.
Rachel Stephen-Smith encouraged First Nations Canberrans to consider standing for election to the body.
"I think the referendum on recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through a Voice to Parliament has raised the profile of our own elected body," Ms Stephen-Smith said.
"And I hope that will encourage more people to have their say to ensure that we're electing a strong Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body, and also to participate in the review so that we can continue to strengthen that voice to the ACT government and Assembly."
Ms Stephen-Smith said the failed referendum for a national Voice to Parliament had raised the profile of the Elected Body.
"I think one of the many reasons that Canberra's were the only jurisdiction to vote yes in the referendum last year was because we had the experience of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to government, and we know that it's made a positive impact," she said.
Nominations to run for the 2024 Elected Body election opened last week and will close at noon on Monday, June 3.
Voting opens on July 6 and closes at 6pm on Saturday, July 13.
Elections for the seven-member body are held every three years.
Eighteen people nominated for the 2021 election, and 267 eligible people cast formal ballots in the election.
Census data collected in 2021 by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed there were more than 6000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Canberra who would have been eligible to vote.
A report into the conduct of the election, released by Elections ACT in 2021, said: "At the time of polling at the [Alexander Maconochie Centre] on Wednesday 7 July 2021, approximately 101 detainees identified as being an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander. Of the 101 potential electors, a total of 19 people cast a vote."
The Auditor-General last year found the part-time Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body in the ACT, which attracts low voter turnout, risked being an ineffective support for Indigenous self-determination in the ACT.
An independent review is considering the future of the Elected Body, with the government earlier this year committing to working with the ACT's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community on improvements.
The ACT committed $1.19 million over three years to increase members' paid time and set up an independent secretariat.
"The more people who are going to come out and vote, the more people are going to have conversations about the elected body - and then that will encourage more people to get involved," Ms Stephen-Smith said.
