When did Indigenous Australians and people from non-European backgrounds get the right to become members of the Australian Parliament?

Thank you Emma for this great question, the answer to which is closely tied to the history of Australian citizenship and the right to vote. To be a member of Parliament, you must be an Australian citizen and be eligible to vote for the House of Representatives (and also 18 years of age or older). In the past, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of non-European backgrounds have not had these rights.

The Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902 excluded all ‘aboriginal native[s] of Australia, Africa, Asia or the Islands of the Pacific except New Zealand’ from voting unless they could vote in state elections. In most states, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders peoples were not able to vote. From 1920 all migrant British subjects except Pacific Islanders were able to vote in Australian elections. However, the Immigration Restriction Act 1901 had stopped non-white immigration to Australia, and Pacific Island and other non-white migrants had been deported.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were granted Australian citizenship along with all other Australians in 1948 by the Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948. (Before this all Australians were British subjects). However, citizenship did not give voting rights to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This was guaranteed by the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1962. The first Aboriginal member of parliament was Senator Neville Bonner in 1971.

Non-European migrants were not given a path to citizenship by the Nationality and Citizenship Act. Eligibility was extended to non-European migrants in 1957, but only after a person had been a resident for 15 years. This requirement was lowered to 3 years (the same as for British migrants) in 1973. The first Asian-Australian member of Parliament was Tsebin Tchen who was elected to the Senate in 1998.