12 September 2008

Results of the 2008 local government elections will be posted live online from 6.30pm on Saturday, 13 September.

The New South Wales Electoral Commission (NSWEC) has built a Virtual Tally Room (VTR) on its website at www.elections.nsw.gov.au so candidates and the public can follow the count as it progresses.

“For the first time at local government elections, results will be posted online soon after each polling place closes. These will not be final results but will show the count to the first preference stage for all councillor elections,” NSW Electoral Commission Colin Barry said.

“This will assist more than 4,600 candidates and the public in following the election as it unfolds tomorrow night and into the following week.”

Mr Barry said an initial count of first preference votes would be conducted on election night in more than 2,200 polling places across the State and the results entered into the VTR by the local returning officer.

Due to complexities of the counting system it could take more than a week to finalise councillor results in some local government areas.

“Under the voting system used for electing councillors in NSW, the elector is empowered to control the allocation of preferences on the ballot paper and in many council areas they have the option of voting above or below the line,” Mr Barry said.

“The proportional representation voting system becomes complex to count manually where voters have allocated their preferences by numbering group voting squares above the line.

“It produces a multitude of variables so we have developed a centralised computer counting system that will ensure the count is conducted accurately and reduces delays in the result. This is the same system used at the 2007 State election to count the Legislative Council ballot paper.”

All above the line ballot papers with more than one preference will be transferred to the Riverwood counting centre commencing on the evening of Monday, 15 September. Ballot paper information will be entered into a computer program which will then perform the distribution of preferences.

The NSWEC has released a short web video to explain the end-to-end process for those ballot papers transferred to Riverwood. The video will assist candidates who are unable to send a scrutineer to the count centre.

The NSWEC will publish a schedule that shows on which day a particular council election is scheduled to be counted at Riverwood. The timetable can be viewed at www.elections.nsw.gov.au from tomorrow.

“The counting schedule is a guide as to when each council’s ballot papers are likely to be counted. The schedule will be updated twice each day to reflect the changing nature of the counts and to ensure that all 200 data entry staff are employed efficiently on their shifts.”

Mr Barry said there will be 27 contests where the mayor is elected by the people. These counts will be undertaken locally by the Returning Officer.

“Initial results of these elections will be posted in the Virtual Tally Room from 6.30pm on Saturday night but cannot be finalised until the following Tuesday after postal votes have arrived.”

Postal votes will be received by the Returning Officer until 6pm on the Monday after the election or delivered to a polling place tomorrow to be included in the count. The distribution of preferences can then begin on Tuesday, 16 September.

The NSWEC will conduct referendums and/or polls in 22 council areas. Voting in referendums is compulsory and the results will begin to be counted on Saturday night. Polls will be counted on Sunday or Monday and the results posted online.

Results Timetable

Saturday 13 September Preliminary results online from 6.30pm

Referendum questions counted

Sunday 14 September Check count to confirm results

Monday 15 September Postal votes due 6.00pm

Poll Questions counted

Tuesday 16 September Distribution of preferences begins

Wednesday 17 September Distribution of preferences continues

Thursday 18 September Distribution of preferences continues

Friday 19 September Distribution of preferences continues

Friday 26 September Counting expected to conclude

Media Contact: Adrian Kerr, NSW Electoral Commission

(02) 9290 5954    adrian.kerr@elections.nsw.gov.au