Vote count information
2024 Epping, Hornsby and Pittwater State by-elections
On this page
Results website
Initial count results will be published progressively from approximately 6:30pm to 10:30pm Saturday, 19 October 2024.
The result of each count will be published as soon as practicable after completion, in a series of reports:
Epping
- Initial Count First Preference Votes
- Initial Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Check Count First Preference Votes
- Check Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Distribution of Preferences
Hornsby
- Initial Count First Preference Votes
- Initial Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Check Count First Preference Votes
- Check Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Distribution of Preferences
Pittwater
- Initial Count First Preference Votes
- Initial Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Check Count First Preference Votes
- Check Count Two Candidates Preferred
- Distribution of Preferences
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voting centres ordinary votes |
Initial count TCP count |
Voting centre | Election night
Saturday, 19 October 2024 6pm–10pm |
|
Selected early voting centres ordinary votes Epping: Hornsby: Pittwater: |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office | Election night
Saturday, 19 October 2024 6pm–10pm |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 1) |
Initial count TCP count |
Epping:
Boronia Grove Community Centre 40 Victoria Street Epping NSW 2121 Hornsby: Hornsby Council function room 296 Peats Ferry Road Hornsby NSW 2077 Pittwater: 59 Old Barrenjoey Road Avalon Beach NSW 2107 |
Election night
Saturday, 19 October 2024 6pm–10pm |
| Early voting centres ordinary votes |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office | Monday following election day until Wednesday, 23 October 2024 |
| Declared facilities ordinary votes |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office | Monday following election day until Wednesday, 23 October 2024 |
| Telephone assisted voting |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office | Monday following election day until Wednesday, 23 October 2024 |
| Declaration votes
(Absent, Enrolment (including Name Not on Roll) and Name Already Marked as Voted (NAMAV)) |
Initial count Note: No TCP counts of this vote type |
Election Manager’s office | Friday following election day |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 2) |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office | Monday, 28 October 2024 |
|
Postal votes (Progressive Count 3) |
Initial count TCP count |
Election Manager’s office |
Friday, 1 November 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 | Election Manager’s office | Monday following election day until Monday, 4 November 2024 |
| N/A | Distribution of preferences | Election Manager’s office | Week commencing Monday, 4 November 2024 (date and time to be confirmed) |
Sunday following election day
No counting will occur on the Sunday following election day.
Election Manager's office address and hours of operation
| District | Address | Contact number | Election Night | Hours of operation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Epping | Suite 201, 51 Rawson Street, Epping NSW 2121 | (+61 2) 9179 0030 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm |
| Hornsby | Unit 16, 19-27 Turner Road, Berowra Heights NSW 2082 | (+61 2) 9179 0020 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm |
| Pittwater | Unit 9/5 Vuko Place, Warriewood NSW 2102 | (+61 2) 9179 0040 | Counting will commence at 6pm and cease at 10pm | Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm |
Scrutiny of postal votes
The initial scrutiny of postal votes and the counting of votes will be conducted at the Election Manager’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, 1 November 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 above) |
|---|---|
| Monday, 14 October to Friday, 18 October 2024 | Progressive Count 1 |
| Monday, 21 October to Friday, 25 October 2024 | Progressive Count 2 |
| Monday, 28 October to Friday, 1 November 2024 | Progressive Count 3 |
Scrutiny of declaration votes
Declaration votes are:
- Absent: issued to an elector voting outside the district in which they are enrolled
- 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 initial scrutiny of declaration vote envelopes will be conducted at the Election Manager’s office from Monday, 21 October to Friday, 25 October 2024. 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.
Counts overview
The ballot papers will undergo the following counts:
Initial count
The first count of first preference votes, conducted at voting centres on election night and at the Election Manager’s office from election night onwards. An initial count is conducted for each venue and vote type (for example, postal votes and declaration votes). The initial count is a manual count.
Ballot papers are examined for formality and sorted to the first preference for each candidate or to the Informals pile – for example, 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.
Two candidates preferred (TCP) count
Before election day, the Electoral Commissioner selects the two candidates who are considered most likely to be the two remaining candidates after the distribution of preferences. These are known as the ‘TCP candidates’.
The TCP count is conducted immediately after the initial count by distributing each of the non-TCP candidates’ ballot papers to the TCP candidate with the next highest preference on each ballot paper. It is a manual count.
Note: The TCP Count is not the official distribution of preferences. It provides an indication of the likely election outcome.
Check count
The check count is a combination of a manual process (batching) and a data entry process:
- Batching: sorting the ballot papers for each candidate into single preference (for example, there is only a single ’1’, a single ‘tick’, or a single ‘cross’ on the ballot paper and no other preferences) and multi preference. The Informals pile is sorted into Blanks and Non-Blanks.
- Registration: entering the check count results into the NSW Electoral Commission’s computer count system.
- Data Entry: entering all preferences on all multi preference ballot papers into the computer count system. The single preference ballot papers for each candidate and the blanks are registered as a bulk figure (during the Registration step above) and do not undergo data entry.
Note: The check count is the official count that is used in the distribution of preferences within the computer count system to determine the elected candidate(s). The check count results, and the TCP results based on the check count will be progressively published on the Results webpage.
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. It is conducted within the computer count system in an automated manner, using all the preference data entered during the check count.
The DoP will be conducted in the Election Manager's office during the week commencing Monday, 4 November.
Note: the exact date and time of the DoP will be published closer to the date. The Results webpage will display the final count reports 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 made by the candidate prior to the Electoral Commissioner declaring the result of an election. The NSW Electoral Commission will publish the expected date and time at which the result will be declared.
The request must set out the reasons why a recount is being requested, identifying the specific error or irregularity that it is alleged could potentially affect the election result.
The preferred way to lodge a recount request is by email to both:
- the relevant district’s Election Manager; and
- the NSW Electoral Commission at candidates@elections.nsw.gov.au.
Requestors should also follow up in person or by telephone with the Election Manager to confirm their email request has been received.
For further details, refer to the Recount Policy EL.566 on this website.
Declaration of results
Following the distribution of preferences in the NSWEC’s computer count system, a candidate will be declared ‘elected’ within the system. Following this, the candidate will be declared provisionally elected on the NSWEC’s results website.
The official result of the election will be declared by the Electoral Commissioner. Notice of the Commissioner’s declaration will be published on the NSWEC website. The Commissioner will also endorse the name of the person elected on the writ and return the writ to the Speaker.
Additional information
Understand how state elections work