Model 3 - Presidential Assembly appoints the President

Comments
This model is similar to Model 2 except that the president is appointed by a directly elected, special-purpose Presidential Assembly. The powers of the President are not codified, but instead dealt with in the same way employed in the 1999 proposal.

It is envisaged that the Presidential Assembly should conduct itself as a non party political body; a body that resembles the 1998 constitutional convention instead of a parliament. While this would be the ideal, there is no way to ensure this would happen, short of banning party participation, which would be both undemocratic and probably unconstitutional.

Candidates for the Presidential Assembly would ideally ask to be elected on the basis of their standing in the community, rather than their support for a party's nominee, as there would be no official nominees at the time of the election. The presence of the six state governors is intended to 'set the tone' for the body and provide the assembly with the benefit of their constitutional knowledge and experience.

Proponents of this model see it as a bridge between popular election and parliamentary appointment, giving the people a vote (if only an indirect one) while avoiding the risks of a President claiming a superior personal mandate to the Prime Minister of the day.

The presidential term of office is set at fixed five year terms, and not placed in 'synch' with the parliament, as this might present a president with a conflict of interest when given advice to dissolve parliament. Elections for the Presidential Assembly would be held simultaneously with every half-Senate election. This will reduce significantly the cost of the election.

Eligibility
Every Australian citizen qualified to be a member of the Commonwealth Parliament, provided that he or she is not a member of the Commonwealth Parliament or a State or Territory Parliament at the time of nomination.

Nomination
A nominee must have no less than 1000 nominators, of which at least one hundred must be from each State.

Election
The President to be appointed from the list of nominees by a specially convened electoral college to be known as the Presidential Assembly. The Presidential Assembly acts as a standing body and convenes solely for this purpose. Elections for the Presidential Assembly shall be held simultaneously with every half Senate election. Each elected member would hold office for six years, with elections for half the Assembly to be held every three years.

One year from the end of the incumbent president's term, the chair of the Assembly shall call for nominations. Some months later, nominations shall be closed and the full list of nominees published for public scrutiny before being presented to the Presidential Assembly.

The Presidential Assembly convenes after close of nominations to begin the process of appointing the new president (or re-appointing the incumbent, if they so choose) from the list of nominees. Appointment is to be carried by a simple majority of votes in the Presidential Assembly.

The Presidential Assembly to be composed of 48 members in total: 42 members being directly elected by the people with the addition of the 6 state governors. The elected seats may be apportioned to each state as follows: NSW and VIC: 8 seats each, QLD: 6 seats, SA and WA: 5 seats, TAS: 4 seats, NT and ACT: 3 seats.

Tenure
Five year term of office. Limit of two terms.

Removal
Same as for federal judges. The President may be removed from office by a resolution of both Houses of the Parliament in the same session on the ground of proved misbehaviour or incapacity.

Casual Vacancy
To be filled by the most senior state governor until a new president can be appointed by the Presidential Assembly.

Non-Reserve Powers
Same as the Governor General - incorporated by reference.

Reserve Powers
Same as the Governor General

Pluses Offers public participation through the vote for the Presidential Assembly and through the open nominations process, yet does not require codification of the president's powers. While there is greater public participation than models 1 and 2, the existence of the college curbs the presidential mandate. No president can claim a personal mandate superior to the Prime Minister of the day. As in model 2, a wide range of people would agree to nominate for the presidency who would otherwise be reluctant to enter the fray of a general election campaign. The Presidential Assembly keeps the presidency at least one step removed from an issues based campaign and therefore from needing to take a stance on political issues of the day. The cost of elections for the Presidential Assembly are minimized by holding them at the same time as Senate elections.

Minuses The model stops short of full direct election with all its attendant democratic appeal. While it is intended to bridge the gap between direct electionists and those who favour parliamentary appointment, it may please neither group. The members of the Presidential Assembly are to be elected by the people, but so are the members of the Federal Parliament. Will the Presidential Assembly have any less politicians than the Members of the House of Representatives? Political involvement of the major parties in and around the Presidential Assembly might transform it into a very political body. If that is so, why not simply use the federal parliament as proposed in Model 2?