People with disability

Assistance at voting centres

Voting in person

If you need help casting your vote, you can take a friend or relative with you, or you can seek assistance from an election official at the voting centre (polling place).

Election officials can help you mark your ballot papers as you wish, or put your completed ballot papers into the ballot box for you.

Venue accessibility

Voting centre locations are published on our website before every election. We provide information about accessibility for every voting centre to help you choose the best venue for your needs.

We rate each venue according to wheelchair accessibility, including whether it:

• is fully wheelchair accessible

• has assisted wheelchair access

• is not wheelchair accessible.

There is a wheelchair accessible voting screen set up in each voting centre.

Learn more about wheelchair accessibility ratings. 

Should you require additional support, an election official can:

• bring the ballot papers out to you

• wait while you complete the ballot papers

• place your ballot papers in the ballot box for you.

Note: the election official will be accompanied by a scrutineer or another election official, family member or friend of your choice to ensure your paper is submitted correctly.

Certain cardboard material, such as the ballot box, have bright contrast markings to assist voters with depth perception.

All voting centres (polling places) have handheld magnifying sheets and maxi pens. If you need either of these items, please ask an election official.

Easy read guide

The Council for Intellectual Disability has produced an easy read guide for the 2023 NSW State election to assist with voting. Read the easy read How to vote guide (PDF 0.8MB).

Voting options

If your circumstances make it difficult for you to go to a voting centre on election day, you may be eligible to use an alternative voting option.

Early voting

You can vote in person before the election if you can’t get to a voting centre on election day.

Postal voting

You can apply to vote by postal service at a particular election, or apply to register as a postal voter for every election.

Technology-assisted voting (telephone voting)

You may be eligible to vote over the phone. Information about eligibility and how to use the telephone voting service will be available prior to each election.

Declared facility voting

We visit nursing homes, convalescent homes, hospitals and similar institutions to allow residents to vote onsite before election day.

Braille ballot papers

Braille ballot papers will be available for the NSW Local Government elections on 14 September 2024.

Electors who wish to vote using braille ballot papers for these elections can apply by calling us on 1300 135 736 or by email to enquiries@elections.nsw.gov.au

Applications for braille ballot papers are open from Monday, 1 July to 6pm on Monday, 5 August 2024.  

Braille ballot papers can be: 

• posted to an elector’s enrolled address or an alternative address, or 

• delivered to a voting centre (during pre-poll or for election day) within the elector’s council area, where the papers will be completed in person.

The elector will be asked to include the following information in their application: 

• to make a declaration that they are unable to read an ordinary ballot paper

• advise how the elector would like to receive their ballot papers from the options above

• provide the postal address the ballot papers will be sent to (if the postal option is chosen)

•  indicate which voting centre the ballot papers should be delivered to (if the in-person option is chosen)

• provide contact details for the purpose of application updates.

Change to electoral legislation regarding 'unsound mind'

Some aspects of the law have changed for the way elections are run in New South Wales (NSW).

People who were previously excluded from enrolling to vote in NSW on the grounds of being of “unsound mind” now have the right to vote in State and local government elections.

Find out more about the change to legislation regarding ‘unsound mind’.

National Relay Service

If you are deaf, hard of hearing and/or have a speech impairment, please contact us through the National Relay Service (NRS).

Choose your access option and ask for 1300 135 736.

Improving participation

We consult with the sector to improve the election experience for all members of the community. Read more about our diversity and inclusion in our action plans and voting options factsheet for people with disability below.