QUEENSLANDERS have been given just four days to ensure their enrolment was up-to-date, following Premier Campbell Newman's decision to call a snap state election for January 31.
New enrolments, or changes to existing enrolments, must be received by the Electoral Commission of Queensland by 5pm on January 10, this Saturday, to be valid for the 2015 state election.
With school holidays not due to end until January 27, just four days prior to the election, many Queensland families would still be away on holidays.
Tourism industry estimates suggest 20 per cent of Queenslanders aren't home this week, making it unlikely some of them will enroll to vote.
Greens Senator Larissa Waters said the move was aimed at discouraging traditionally non-Liberal National Party voters.
"I think it's a deliberate strategy from the Newman government to try to exclude new voters and younger voters from the roll, because history shows us new and younger voters tend to vote progressive," she said.
"Mostly that's the Greens and other parties that aren't the LNP.
"So no doubt Premier Newman knows how dire the polls are for him and is trying to take every opportunity to stack the odds in his favour."
But Senator Waters said would-be voters away on holidays would still be able to enrol via the Australian Electoral Commission website.
"Thankfully, we can do things online now, so I'll be encouraging everyone to do the online enrolling, which is much easier than the old traditional filling out the stack of forms," she said.
"So let's hope young people are still connected to the internet.
"I'm sure they are, even while on their holidays, probably particularly so, and can just take that 30 seconds or 60 seconds to enrol."
Youth disenfranchisement was also of concern to online activist group GetUp's communication director Matt Levinson.
"Calling a snap election while Queenslanders who turned 18 since the last election are at the beach smacks of desperation," he said.
"Most of us are on our mobiles all year round now, so we're getting a Facebook app out asking GetUp members to remind their young friends and family to enrol."
An LNP spokesman said Mr Newman urged anyone eligible to vote to enrol as soon as possible and pointed to comments the Premier made earlier on Tuesday.
"Queenslanders don't want, and they certainly don't need, months of endless politicking and uncertainty as people jostle up to an election date," Mr Newman said.
"We can't afford to lose one day because that's bad for the economy and it's bad for jobs.
"We need to get on with the job, ladies and gentlemen, of providing the certainty for business so that they can employ people, so that we can continue to see the economy of this great State repaired, and that's what we've been about for the last three years."
The LNP spokesman said the setting of enrolment deadlines was in the hands of the Electoral Commission of Queensland and not the Newman government.
