when were aboriginal allowed to vote

Aboriginal Australians were first granted the right to vote in federal elections with the Commonwealth Electoral Act of 1962. This Act allowed all First Nations people the option to enroll and vote in federal elections, although enrollment was not compulsory for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people at that time (voting became compulsory once enrolled). Before this, the Commonwealth Franchise Act of 1902 had denied Aboriginal people the right to vote in federal elections unless they were already enrolled in state elections. In terms of state elections, the process was more gradual and varied by state. Western Australia and the Northern Territory granted Aboriginal people the right to vote shortly after the federal Act in 1962. Queensland was the last state to extend voting rights to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, passing legislation in late 1965 that came into effect on February 1, 1966. Full equality in voting rights, including compulsory enrollment, was only achieved in 1984 under the Commonwealth Electoral Amendment Act 1983.