Vote count information
2024 Berrigan, Cowra and Junee Local Government by-elections
On this page
Results website
The results website for the by-elections for the Councils of Berrigan, Cowra and Junee will be live from 6pm on Saturday, 23 November 2024.
Initial count results will be published progressively from approximately 6.30pm to 10.30pm Saturday, 23 November 2024.
The result of each count will be published as soon as practicable after completion, in a series of reports:
Berrigan
Cowra
Junee
Count location and timeline
The following is a guide to the timing and locations of counting. Please note the timetable is subject to change, updates will be published here.
| Vote type | Count type | Location | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polling places ordinary votes |
Initial count |
Polling place | Election night
Saturday, 23 November 2024 6pm – 10pm |
|
Pre-poll centre(s) ordinary votes
|
Initial count |
Returning Officer’s office | Election night
Saturday, 23 November 2024 6pm – 10pm Continue Monday following election day if required. |
| Declared Institutions ordinary votes |
Initial count |
Returning Officer's office | Election night
Saturday, 23 November 2024 6pm – 10pm Continue Monday following election day if required. |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 1) |
Initial count |
NSW Electoral Commission's office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Monday following election day |
| Telephone assisted voting |
Initial count |
NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Monday following election day |
| Declaration votes
(Enrolment (including Name Not on Roll) and Name Already Marked as Voted (NAMAV)) |
Initial count |
NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Thursday and Friday following election day |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 2) |
Initial count |
NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Monday, 2 December 2024 |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 3) |
Initial count |
NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Friday, 6 December 2024 from 11am Note: Any postal votes accepted after 11am will be included in Progressive Count 3 shortly after 6pm. |
| All vote types | Check count | NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Monday following election day until Monday, 9 December 2024 |
| N/A | Distribution of preferences | NSW Electoral Commission’s office
Level 3, 231 Elizabeth Street, Sydney |
Week commencing Monday, 9 December 2024 (date and time to be confirmed) |
Sunday following election day
No counting will occur on the Sunday following election day.
Returning Officer's office address and hours of operation
| Council | Address | Contact number | Election night | Hours of operation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berrigan | Berrigan Shire Council, 56 Chanter Street, Berrigan NSW | (+61 2) 9179 0050 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday following election day if required
9am to 5pm |
| Cowra | Cowra Council, 116 Kendal Street, Cowra NSW | (+61 2) 9179 0055 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday following election day if required
9am to 5pm |
| Junee | Junee Shire Council, 29 Belmore Street, Junee NSW | (+61 2) 9179 0060 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday following election day if required
9am to 5pm |
Scrutiny of postal votes
The initial scrutiny of postal votes will be conducted at the NSW Electoral Commission’s office. This includes:
- scrutiny of postal vote certificates to determine whether the postal votes are to be accepted.
- extraction of ballot papers from accepted postal votes. The ballot papers will be extracted, unfolded, tallied and stored in securely sealed ballot paper cartons. The ballot papers will not be inspected prior to the initial count.
Postal vote scrutiny and counting cannot be completed until the last day that a postal vote may be received, that is, by 6pm Friday, 6 December 2024.
The initial count of postal votes is comprised of three ‘progressive counts’. The scrutiny timeline is below:
| Postal vote scrutiny and extraction timeline | Included in (see count timeline and location above) |
|---|---|
| Monday, 18 November to Friday, 22 November 2024 | Progressive Count 1 |
| Monday, 25 November to Friday, 29 November 2024 | Progressive Count 2 |
| Monday, 2 December to Friday, 6 December 2024 | Progressive Count 3 |
Scrutiny of declaration votes
Declaration votes are:
- Enrolment (including Name Not on Roll): issued to a person omitted from the authorised roll, a person enrolling for the first time, or a person updating their enrolment from their old district to their new district
- Name already marked as voted: issued to an elector who has already been marked as having voted but who claims not to have voted.
These electors are required to complete a written declaration on an envelope and their ballot paper will be placed in this envelope before being placed in a ballot box.
The scrutiny of declaration vote envelopes will be conducted at the NSW Electoral Commission’s office. This includes:
- scrutiny of the declaration vote envelopes to determine whether the declaration votes are to be accepted.
- extraction and initial count of ballot papers from accepted declaration vote envelopes.
Declaration Vote Scrutiny, Extraction, and Initial Count Timeline: Thursday 28 November and Friday 29 November 2024
Counts overview
The ballot papers will undergo the following counts:
Initial count
The first count of first preference votes is conducted from election night onwards. An initial count is conducted for each venue and vote type (for example, polling places, pre-poll venues, postal votes and declaration votes). The initial count is a manual process.
Ballot papers are examined for formality and sorted to the first preference for each candidate or to the Informals pile, that is, ballot papers where there is no first preference recorded or that cannot be sorted to a candidate as they appear to be informal.
Note: The Initial Count is considered an indicative count only.
Check count
The check count is the official count that is used in the distribution of preferences to determine the elected candidate. The check count results will be progressively published on the NSW Electoral Commission's results web page, overwriting the initial count results. The check count is a manual process.
The check count comprises the below steps:
- Checking the initial count results: This is the second count of first preference votes. All ballot papers are re-examined to confirm the first preference votes and informals.
- Amalgamation: the ballot papers from all venues/vote types are combined in preparation for the Distribution of Preferences (DoP). If an amalgamation is required, once each venue/vote type is check counted, its ballot papers are amalgamated with the ballot papers of all venue/vote types counted so that each candidate have a consolidated pile of first preference ballot papers and there will be only one consolidated pile for of Informals.
An amalgamation is only necessary if a distribution of preferences is required to determine the elected candidate. To be elected, a candidate must receive an absolute majority (that is, 50% + 1) of the formal first preference votes in the count. If a candidate has attained an absolute majority, a check count is still required however an amalgamation and a distribution of preferences will not be required.
Distribution of preferences
The distribution of preferences (DoP) to determine the elected candidate can only be conducted after the close of receipt of postal votes and after all check counts are complete.
The DoP will be conducted at the NSW Electoral Commission's office during the week commencing Monday, 9 December 2024.
Note: The exact date and time of the DoP will be published closer to the date. The Results webpage will display the Distribution of preferences report as soon as practicable after the DoP.
Scrutineers
Please refer to the Scrutineers section on this website for information about the appointment of scrutineers and their role.
Recount
Any request for a recount must:
- be in writing, and
- be signed by the candidate, and
- set out the reasons for the request, and
- be lodged with the Returning Officer within 24 hours of the results being published on the NSW Electoral Commission results website.
The preferred way to lodge a recount request is by email to both:
- the relevant Council’s Returning Officer, and
- the NSW Electoral Commission at candidates@elections.nsw.gov.au.
It is strongly recommended that requestors follow up in person or by telephone with the Returning Officer to confirm their email request has been received.
A candidate who is granted a recount is not required to cover the cost of the recount.
Where a recount is requested and subsequently approved by the Electoral Commissioner, the Declaration of Results will be delayed until the completion of the recount.
For further details, refer to the Recount Policy LG.566 on this website.
Declaration of results
When all the votes have been counted, the returning officer declares the election in writing, which is an official announcement of the election result. The date of the declaration varies from council to council and depends on the time it takes to count the votes. The declaration will be displayed at the office of the relevant council and the election result will be published on the NSW Electoral Commission website.
Additional information
Understand how local government elections work