The Electoral Act 1856 was an act of the government of Victoria

Government of Victoria

The Government of Victoria, under the Constitution of Australia, ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas...

 which introduced voting by secret ballot

Secret ballot

The secret ballot is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous. The key aim is to ensure the voter records a sincere choice by forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation or bribery. The system is one means of achieving the goal of...

. The act was passed by a one vote majority on 13 March 1856; it was enacted when it received assent

Royal Assent

The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...

 from the Governor of Victoria on 19 March of the same year.

Victorian law was the third of its kind enacted by a government anywhere in the world. France adopted the secret ballot in the late 18th century. Tasmania adopted the secret ballot second on 7 February 1856. South Australia enacted a similar law two weeks after the Victorian law, on 2 April 1856; led by secret Ballot pioneer and advocate William Boothby

William Boothby

William Robinson Boothby , was Electoral Commissioner for South Australia, in charge of every parliamentary election from 1856 to 1903.Boothby was the eldest son of South Australian Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Boothby....

. When the practice was adopted in the United States, it was called 'the Australian ballot'.