What is Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives?
The [[Australian House of Representatives]] is elected from 151 single-member areas called '''Divisions'''. They are also commonly known as '''electorates''' or '''seats'''. ==Allocation== The Divisions are divided among the [[states and territories of Australia]] as set out in the [[Australian Constitution]] and the ''Electoral Act''<ref>Australian Electoral Commission.[http://www.aec.gov.au/About_AEC/publications/Strategy_Research_Analysis/paper4/page03.htm ''Research Report 4 - Australian Federal Redistributions 1901-2003.''] Accessed May 5, 2008.</ref> It is based on population, with the following [[wikt:exception|exceptions]]: *Each original state must have at least five Members of Parliament. This means that [[Tasmania]] has more divisions than it would get based on its population. *The [[Northern Territory]] has been given more representation under recent legislative amendments{{Fact|date=May 2008}} *The Constitution says that the House of Representatives should be about twice as large as the [[Australian Senate|Senate]] Within each state and territory, the boundaries of the divisions must be redrawn in a process known as ''redistribution'' at least once every seven years, or when the state's allocation of Divisions changes. Boundaries are drawn by Redistribution Committee. Population is based on the number of ''enrolled voters'' not the total number of residents. Within a state or territory, the number of voters in each Division can not vary by more than 10% from the average across the state. The number of voters cannot vary by more than 3.5% from the average projected enrolment three-and-a-half years into the future. ==Naming== The Divisions of the House of Representatives are unusual in the way they are named. Many of them are not named after geographical features or numbered, as in most other legislatures around the world. Most Divisions are named after important historical people, such as former [[politician]]s (often [[Prime Minister of Australia|Prime Ministers]]), [[explorer]]s, [[artist]]s and