Media Guide
2016 federal election
Contents
Section 1 Essential information for the media
Latest news
AEC Media Centre
Media image library
Election results
Media feed
Media enquiries
Election calendar
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
Section 2 Candidate and seat information
7
Candidate nominations
7
Candidate announcements
7
Political parties
7
Current list of registered parties
7
Party logos
7
House of Representatives
8
Entitlement to representation for states and territories
8
Redistributions8
Section 3 Enrolment and the election process
12
Enrolment12
Close of rolls
12
Special categories of enrolment
12
Access to the electoral roll
13
Voting13
Election day polling places
13
Early voting centres
13
Postal voting
14
Mobile voting
14
Telephone voting for people who are blind or have low vision
14
Counting the votes
15
Scrutineers15
Media access to the count
15
Section 4 Election advertising,
funding and statistics
16
Electoral advertising
16
Authorisation16
Media blackout
16
How to vote cards
16
Election funding
17
Federal election statistics
17
Nomination Guide for Candidates2
Section 1
Essential information for the media
The AEC provides a range of services to the media throughout a federal election.
Latest news
Election results
Keep up to date with the latest information from
the AEC via:
The AEC’s tally room provides comprehensive
real time results from the close of the polls on
election day until all counting has concluded. A
link to the tally room will be made available from
www.aec.gov.au before 6pm on election day.
■■
AEC media centre: www.aec.gov.au/media
■■
Twitter: @AusElectoralComm
■■
Media release subscription service:
apps.aec.gov.au/subscribe
AEC Media Centre
In addition to providing updates to the latest
news, the media centre also provides direct links
to a range of resources and information relevant
to the media regarding the election.
Media image library
The AEC’s media image library is available at
www.aec.gov.au/media/image-library. Images
are available for use under a creative commons
attribution license.
Information regarding how the votes are counted
and indicative timeframes are available in section
3 of this document.
Media feed
The AEC also provides a results feed in raw data
formats to allow media outlets with compatible
software to use the data for graphics and
analysis. More information about the media feed,
including how to access it, is available at
www.aec.gov.au/mediafeed.
Previous federal elections
Results from previous federal elections are
available at results.aec.gov.au.
Media enquiries
■■
AEC national media team: 02 6271 4419,
02 6271 4415 or [email protected]
■■
AEC state/territory media contacts:
www.aec.gov.au/media-contacts
Media Guide 2016 federal election3
Election calendar
May
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Postal vote
applications
open
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
24
25
26
27
28
29
Issue of
the writs
23
8pm
Close of Rolls
30
31
June
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
12 noon
Close of
candidate
nominations
10
12 noon
Declaration
of candidate
nominations
11
12
13
14
Early voting
commences
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
28
29
30
Mobile polling
commences
27
6pm - Close
of postal vote
applications
Media Guide 2016 federal election4
Election calendar
July
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
1
Saturday
2
Sunday
3
Election day
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Last day for
the receipt of
declaration
votes
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
August
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Return of
the writs
(latest date)
Media Guide 2016 federal election5
Media coverage in
polling places
Members of the media who would like to visit
a polling place must ensure the following
guidelines are adhered to.
■■
The operation of the polling place must be
allowed to continue without disruption or any
inconvenience to voters or polling officials.
■■
Media must adhere to the direction of the
Officer in Charge at all times.
■■
Media are not allowed in a ballot paper secure
zone.
■■
Media are not allowed to film or photograph
items in a ballot paper secure zone.
■■
Any filming of a person voting must ensure
that none of the voter’s ballot paper selections
can be identified.
■■
The media must not touch any ballot papers
or interfere with the operation of voting or
the count.
■■
Particular scenes cannot be ‘recreated’ for
better effect.
■■
Ballot papers and other AEC materials must
not be removed from the polling place.
■■
The rights of voters, polling officials and
other members of the public in the polling
place who do not want to be filmed must
be respected.
■■
The rights of scrutineers (candidate
representatives) who wish to observe the
count closely must be respected.
Any member of the media (including camera
crews and photographers) wanting to take
footage of voting or counting at a polling
place (including an early voting centre or
accompanying a mobile polling team) must
obtain the prior permission from the AEC.
Media turning up at a polling place without
obtaining prior permission may be refused entry.
Media failing to follow the AEC’s guidelines at the
polling place may be asked to leave.
Media Guide 2016 federal election6
Section 2
Candidate and seat information
Candidate nominations
Political parties
To nominate for either the Senate or the House of
Representatives, a person must be:
The Register of Political Parties contains a list of
those parties eligible to have their party affiliation
printed on ballot papers next to their endorsed
candidates.
■■
at least 18 years old;
■■
an Australian citizen; and
■■
either enrolled or eligible to be enrolled on the
Commonwealth electoral roll.
A person cannot nominate for the Senate or the
House of Representatives if they are disqualified
under s.44 of the Constitution. Nominees must
declare their eligibility on the nomination form.
The nomination fee for a House of
Representatives candidate is $1000 and the
nomination fee for a Senate candidate is $2000.
Candidates not endorsed by a registered political
party must have their nomination supported by
100 electors listed as nominators who are enrolled
to vote at the election for which the candidate is
nominated.
Full nomination requirements and
nomination forms are available from
www.aec.gov.au/candidates.
Current list of registered parties
The list of registered political parties is frozen
upon the issue of the writs and is available on the
AEC website at www.aec.gov.au/parties.
Party logos
Recent amendments to the Commonwealth
Electoral Act 1918 (Electoral Act) provided that
registered political parties may lodge a logo for
approval by the AEC.
Political parties with a logo approved prior to
the issue of the writs can have their party logo
appear adjacent to their candidate names on
the House of Representatives ballot paper and
above their party or group name above the line
on the Senate ballot paper.
Candidate announcements
A public declaration of nominations for each
House of Representatives and Senate election
will occur at midday on the day following the
close of close of nominations (refer to the election
calendar).
A ballot draw will also be conducted at each
declaration of nominations event to determine the
ballot paper order for the relevant contest.
The AEC will issue a media invite to local media
for the declaration and ballot draw events.
Candidates and members of the public are
welcome to attend. Once each declaration event
has occurred the AEC will upload candidate
information to the AEC website and distribute a
media release as quickly as possible.
After each ballot draw, the AEC moves
immediately to begin the printing of ballot papers.
Further information about the ballot
draw process is available at
www.aec.gov.au/ballot-draw.
Media Guide 2016 federal election7
House of Representatives
Western Australia
There are 150 federal electoral divisions,
each electing a member of the House of
Representatives at the federal election.
Full profiles and maps of each electoral division
can be accessed via www.aec.gov.au/divisions.
Entitlement to representation for
states and territories
The number of electoral divisions within each
state and territory is determined by the Electoral
Commissioner based on the population of
the Commonwealth.
State/Territory
Number of
divisions
New South Wales
47
Victoria
37
Queensland
30
Western Australia
16
South Australia
11
Tasmania
5
Australian Capital Territory
2
Northern Territory
2
Total
150
Redistributions
The entitlement determination made
on 13 November 2014 triggered federal
redistribution processes in Western Australia and
New South Wales.
Western Australia’s entitlement to House of
Representatives seats increased from 15 to 16
and New South Wales’ entitlement decreased
from 48 to 47 seats. The Australian Capital
Territory (ACT) also underwent a federal
redistribution as more than seven years had
elapsed since the previous redistribution in the
ACT.
A new electoral division named Burt was
established as a result of the redistribution
in Western Australia. Full details of the
redistribution are available at www.aec.gov.au/
wa-redistribution.
New South Wales
The previous Division of Hunter was abolished as
a result of the NSW redistribution. However, the
previous neighbouring Division of Charlton has
been renamed Hunter.
The previous Division of Throsby was also
renamed Whitlam. Full details of the redistribution
are available at
www.aec.gov.au/nsw-redistribution.
Australian Capital Territory
No electoral divisions were established or
abolished in the ACT redistribution, however, the
previous Division of Fraser was renamed Fenner.
Full details of the redistribution are available at
www.aec.gov.au/act-redistribution.
Northern Territory
A redistribution of the Northern Territory
commenced on 15 October 2015. Changes to
electoral division boundaries as a result of this
redistribution will apply from the day on which
a notice of determination is published in the
Commonwealth Notices Government Gazette.
This notice will be published on Tuesday 7
February 2017.
The electoral divisions which will apply at the
2016 federal election will therefore be the same as
those which applied at the 2013 federal election.
Media Guide 2016 federal election8
Seat status
Each electoral division (seat) is classified in
terms of its seat status. Seat status is based
on the two-party preferred vote (TPP) count
undertaken at the previous federal election.
The TPP count in each electoral division is
undertaken by a full distribution of preferences
to the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Liberal/
National Coalition (Coalition) as the final two
candidates in the count.
‘Non-classic’ results
Historically, the majority of the contests for
election to the House of Representatives result
in the ‘final two’ candidates being ALP and
Coalition candidates. At the 2013 federal election
this was the case in 139 out of 150 seats. The
remaining eleven seats are categorised by the
AEC as ‘non-classic’.
Notional seat status
Since the 2013 federal election, the boundaries
of seats in New South Wales, Western
Australia and the Australian Capital Territory
have been redrawn.
After a redistribution, the AEC calculates
the notional seat status for each seat in a
redistributed state or territory. The notional seat
status is the margin that a party (candidate)
would have won the seat by using 2013 federal
election voting patterns and applying them to
the redrawn boundaries.
For ‘non-classic’ seats the count after all
preferences have been distributed is referred to
as the Two Candidate Preferred (TCP).
A TPP count is also conducted by the AEC in
‘non-classic’ seats for statistical purposes. This
count notionally allocates votes to the leading
ALP and Coalition candidates using the next
available preference on the ballot papers to
show what the result would have been had these
candidates been the two leading candidates.
State/Territory and national TPP swings can then
be estimated for statistical purposes.
Media Guide 2016 federal election9
Two Party Preferred (TPP)
State/
Electoral division
territory
Notional
party
VIC
McEwen
ALP
NSW
Dobell
ALP**
NSW
Paterson
QLD
Petrie
QLD
Capricornia
State/
Electoral division
territory
Notional
party
0.15
QLD
Blair
ALP
5.26
0.18
WA
Fremantle
ALP
5.40
ALP**
0.27
VIC
Dunkley
LP
5.57
LNP
0.53
NSW
Hunter (previously
named Charlton)
ALP
5.68
Leichhardt
LNP
LNP
%
0.77
State/
Electoral division
territory
Notional
party
VIC
Lalor
ALP
12.16
ACT
Fenner (Previously
named Fraser)
ALP
12.49
SA
Mayo
LP
12.51
NSW
Sydney
ALP
12.87
5.68
NSW
Fowler
ALP
12.89
%
%
NT
Lingiari
ALP
0.88
QLD
TAS
Lyons
LP
1.22
WA
Hasluck
LP
6.02
QLD
McPherson
LNP
13.00
VIC
Bendigo
ALP
1.26
WA
Burt (New seat)
–
6.09
WA
Tangney
LP
13.02
1.32
QLD
Herbert
LNP
6.17
QLD
Wide Bay
LNP
13.16
1.32
NSW
Werriwa
ALP
6.53
NSW
Cowper
NP
13.24
1.40
QLD
Flynn
LNP
6.53
NSW
Lyne
NP
13.52
1.55
QLD
Dickson
LNP
6.72
SA
Grey
LP
13.54
NSW
Whitlam (previously
named Throsby)
ALP
6.91
NSW
Hume
LP
13.58
WA
Forrest
LP
13.81
QLD
Longman
LNP
6.92
VIC
Calwell
ALP
13.86
SA
Boothby
LP
7.12
SA
Port Adelaide
ALP
14.02
VIC
Casey
LP
7.17
VIC
Scullin
ALP
14.35
VIC
Hotham
ALP
7.27
QLD
Fadden
LNP
14.36
WA
Swan
LP
7.34
VIC
Menzies
LP
14.45
NSW
Shortland
ALP
7.40
NSW
Calare
NP
14.97
ACT
Canberra
ALP
7.51
WA
Durack*
LP
15.04
QLD
Dawson
LNP
7.58
NSW
Warringah
LP
15.32
VIC
Corio
ALP
7.75
WA
O’Connor*
LP
15.42
NSW
Bennelong
LP
7.77
WA
Moore
LP
15.44
VIC
Aston
LP
8.20
NSW
Cook
LP
15.71
QLD
Ryan
LNP
8.54
NSW
North Sydney
LP
15.71
NSW
Watson
ALP
8.82
VIC
Gippsland
NP
15.84
QLD
Bowman
LNP
8.86
VIC
Gorton
ALP
16.12
TAS
Denison*
IND
8.91
QLD
Groom
LNP
16.47
WA
Stirling
LP
8.97
VIC
Gellibrand
ALP
16.53
QLD
Hinkler
LNP
9.04
SA
Barker
LP
16.55
VIC
Holt
ALP
9.09
QLD
Kennedy*
KAP
17.15
VIC
Indi*
IND
9.10
QLD
Moncrieff
LNP
17.95
WA
Pearce
LP
9.31
WA
Curtin
LP
18.22
NSW
Newcastle
ALP
9.40
NSW
Grayndler
ALP
18.76
SA
Kingston
ALP
9.70
NSW
Mackellar
LP
18.84
QLD
Fisher
LNP
9.75
NSW
Wentworth
LP
18.92
VIC
Higgins
LP
9.93
NSW
Riverina
NP
18.99
VIC
Wannon
LP
10.07
NSW
Berowra
LP
19.05
SA
Sturt
LP
10.08
VIC
Melbourne*
GRN
19.25
NSW
Chifley
ALP
10.93
NSW
New England*
NP
19.54
VIC
Goldstein
LP
11.03
NSW
Parkes
NP
19.97
VIC
Kooyong
LP
11.06
VIC
Wills*
ALP
20.76
NSW
Blaxland
ALP
11.24
VIC
Murray
LP
20.87
NSW
Cunningham
ALP
11.29
NSW
Bradfield
LP
20.94
WA
Canning
LP
11.35
VIC
Batman*
ALP
20.98
VIC
Maribyrnong
ALP
11.39
NSW
Mitchell
LP
21.39
QLD
Fairfax*
PUP
11.68
NSW
Farrer
LP
21.71
NSW
Hughes
LP
11.81
QLD
Maranoa
LNP
22.28
VIC
Flinders
LP
11.81
VIC
Mallee*
NP
23.66
VIC
McMillan
LP
11.83
QLD
Wright
LNP
11.84
NSW
QLD
NT
QLD
NSW
Parramatta
Lilley
Solomon
Moreton
Richmond
ALP
ALP
CLP
ALP
ALP
1.58
VIC
Chisholm
ALP
1.60
VIC
Bruce
ALP
1.80
SA
Hindmarsh
LP
1.89
WA
TAS
NSW
NSW
Perth
Braddon
Kingsford Smith
Banks
ALP
LP
ALP
LP
2.18
2.56
2.74
2.80
NSW
Eden-Monaro
LP
2.91
NSW
Greenway
ALP
2.98
NSW
Lindsay
LP
2.99
QLD
Griffith
ALP
3.01
NSW
NSW
VIC
VIC
Robertson
Page
Jagajaga
Deakin
LP
NP
ALP
LP
3.09
3.10
3.13
3.18
NSW
Reid
LP
3.33
NSW
Macarthur
LP
3.39
SA
Wakefield
ALP
3.40
VIC
QLD
WA
QLD
NSW
Melbourne Ports
Bonner
Brand
Oxley
Gilmore
ALP
LNP
ALP
ALP
LP
3.56
3.69
3.71
3.77
3.78
VIC
Isaacs
ALP
3.86
VIC
Corangamite
LP
3.94
SA
Adelaide
ALP
3.95
VIC
TAS
QLD
QLD
NSW
La Trobe
Bass
Brisbane
Forde
Barton
LP
LP
LNP
LNP
ALP**
4.01
4.04
4.28
4.38
4.39
NSW
Macquarie
LP
4.48
WA
Cowan
LP
4.52
NSW
McMahon
ALP
4.63
QLD
VIC
Rankin
Ballarat
ALP
ALP
4.78
4.89
SA
Makin
ALP
5.06
TAS
Franklin
ALP
5.09
Media Guide 2016 federal election10
Senate
Two Candidate Preferred (TCP)
State/territory
Division
Elected
%
QLD
Fairfax
PUP
0.03
VIC
Indi
IND
0.25
WA
O’Connor
NAT
0.76
QLD
Kennedy
KAT
2.19
WA
Durack
LP
4.29
VIC
Melbourne
GRN
5.27
VIC
Mallee
NAT
6.21
VIC
Batman
ALP
10.61
NSW
New England
NAT
13.17
VIC
Wills
ALP
15.20
TAS
Denison
IND
15.51
* indicates ‘non-classic’ seats.
**indicates seats where the party status has notionally changed as a
result of the redistribution.
The 2016 federal election is a double dissolution
election. This means that all 76 Senate seats
are up for election. Voters in each state will elect
twelve Senators and voters in each territory will
elect two Senators.
Voting in Senate elections
Voting rules for the Senate have changed since
the 2013 federal election. This federal election
voters will be required to either:
■■
number at least six boxes above the line for
the parties or groups of their choice, or
■■
number at least 12 boxes below the line for
individual candidates of their choice.
Voters can choose to number further boxes above
or below the line should they wish to do so.
Media Guide 2016 federal election11
Section 3
Enrolment and the election process
Enrolment
It is compulsory to enrol and vote in federal
elections for Australian citizens who are 18 years
of age or older.
16 and 17 year-olds can enrol but they won’t be
able to vote in the federal election unless they
turn 18 on or before election day, Saturday 2
July.
Close of rolls
Close of rolls is the date the electoral roll closes
for the federal election. After this date, people
can no longer enrol at the federal election or
update their details on the electoral roll.
The AEC will release enrolment statistics for the
election via a media release as soon as possible
after the close of rolls. Other enrolment statistics
can be found at
www.aec.gov.au/enrolment-statistics.
Special categories of enrolment
There are a range of special enrolment options
for voters who encounter barriers to enrolling
and voting in federal elections.
Silent enrolment
Any voter who believes that having their
address shown on the electoral roll puts them
or their family at risk can apply to register as a
silent elector.
If granted, silent elector status provides that
only the name is shown on the publicly available
electoral roll. Silent elector status is not granted
automatically. Each application is considered by
the relevant Divisional Returning Officer and a
decision is made based on whether it meets the
legal conditions for silent elector status.
Enrolment of overseas electors
Eligible Australians who will be going overseas
for a short period of time and intend to return
to their enrolled address can submit an
overseas notification form to advise the AEC
they will be overseas during the election period
and to maintain their enrolment at their current
enrolled address.
Eligible Australians living or working overseas
can apply to register as an overseas elector up
to three months before or within three years after
they leave Australia. This only applies if they are
intending to return to Australia within six years of
their departure.
Details on overseas enrolment, including access
to the relevant forms is available at
www.aec.gov.au/overseas.
Homeless enrolment & voting
Australian citizens aged 18 years or over who
have no real place of living are still eligible to
enrol and vote. More information is available at
www.aec.gov.au/no-address.
Prisoner enrolment & voting
It is compulsory for Australian prisoners to enrol
for federal elections if they are 18 years or older
and an Australian citizen.
People in prison who have no fixed address can
enrol for the address where:
■■
they were last eligible to be enrolled (this will
generally be the place where they last lived for
a period of one month), or
■■
one of their next of kin is currently enrolled if they
have not previously been eligible to enrol, or
■■
they were born, if neither of the above apply, or
■■
they have the closest connection if none of the
above apply.
Media Guide 2016 federal election12
Prisoners serving a full-time sentence of less
than three years can vote in the federal election.
If their sentence is three years or longer, they can
remain on the electoral roll but are not able to
vote until they are released.
Voting for eligible prisoners can be undertaken
by post or, where possible, in person with a
prison mobile voting team.
Access to the electoral roll
The AEC is authorised under the Electoral Act
to collect details to maintain the electoral roll. To
help ensure an open and accountable electoral
process, the electoral roll (containing names,
addresses and electoral division) is available for
public inspection at any AEC office.
The publicly available roll does not contain date
of birth or contact details such as phone number
or email address.
The AEC are in some cases required to provide
a copy of the electoral roll and as such may
disclose enrolment details to:
■■
state and territory electoral authorities,
■■
Members of Parliament,
■■
Senators,
■■
registered political parties, and/or
■■
Candidates for the House of Representatives.
Voting
The AEC provides a number of ways to cast a
vote during a federal election.
Early voting centres
Early voting centres will be available around
Australia in the weeks leading up to election day
(refer to the election calendar for when early
voting starts).
People are only eligible to vote early, either in
person or by post, if on election day they:
■■
are outside the electoral division where they
are enrolled to vote,
■■
are more than 8km from a polling place,
■■
are travelling,
■■
are unable to leave their workplace to vote,
■■
are seriously ill, infirm or due to give birth
shortly (or caring for someone who is),
■■
are a patient in hospital and can’t vote at the
hospital,
■■
have religious beliefs that prevent them from
attending a polling place,
■■
are in prison serving a sentence of less than
three years or otherwise detained,
■■
are a silent elector, or
■■
have a reasonable fear for their safety.
Eligible voters can find the locations of early
voting centres via www.aec.gov.au/where.
Election day polling places
When available, the locations of polling places
can be found at www.aec.gov.au/where.
Media Guide 2016 federal election13
Postal voting
Overseas voting centres
Postal vote applications can be accepted now.
Applications can be submitted online at
www.aec.gov.au/opva or via a hardcopy
application available from the AEC website, any
AEC office or Australia Post office.
Eligible Australians visiting or living overseas who
are enrolled to vote in the 2016 federal election
can vote in person at most Australian embassies,
consulates and high commissions.
Voters who are eligible to vote by post are
encouraged to complete their postal vote
application as soon as possible so there is
enough time for the AEC to send the voter their
ballot papers and for the voter to return their
completed ballot papers before 6pm on
election day.
Postal vote application forms from
political parties
The Electoral Act permits political parties and
candidates to distribute postal vote applications.
Political parties can distribute postal vote
applications without voters requesting them and
may include return envelopes addressed to the
political party, rather than the AEC.
Voters do not have to use a postal vote
application provided by parties or candidates.
Voters can also choose to return a postal vote
application sent by a party or candidate directly
to the AEC rather than to the political party.
If the voter does return the postal vote
application to the party or candidate, the party or
candidate are required as soon as practicable to
deliver them to the AEC for processing.
The location and contact details of overseas
voting centres will be available at
www.aec.gov.au/overseas.
Telephone voting for people who
are blind or have low vision
Voters who are blind or have low vision can
vote in secret, by telephone, from any location,
without the need to attend a polling place.
Voters must register to cast their vote by
telephone. Registrations will be open until
12pm AEST on election day. When a voter calls
to register, they will be asked to select a PIN.
They will then be sent an email, SMS or letter
confirming their registration details.
Voters who have registered for telephone voting
will then be able to vote up until 6pm on election
day. Their registration number and PIN will be
used to mark their name off the electoral roll. A
call centre voting assistant will record the voter’s
preferences on the ballot papers. The vote will be
secret and a second voting assistant will ensure
that the vote is recorded according to the voter’s
intention.
Mobile voting
AEC mobile voting teams will visit voters who are
not able to get to a polling place. Mobile voting
teams will visit some hospitals, nursing homes,
prisons, selected mine sites and remote areas of
Australia.
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Counting the votes
The counting of votes begins in each polling
place after the doors close at 6pm on election
day. Detailed information on how the votes are
counted is available at www.aec.gov.au/counting.
Scrutineers
Each candidate is entitled to appoint one
scrutineer per polling official during the counting
of ballot papers. All proceedings at the count are
open to inspection by scrutineers.
Media access to the count
Media wanting to take pictures or video of the
counting process must first request access to a
counting centre. Media representatives who turn
up unexpected will likely be refused access.
It is possible that the AEC will coordinate filming
opportunities at counting centres and the details
of these events will be advised via a media invite.
Media granted access to a counting centre must
follow the guidelines available on page 6.
Scrutineers may:
■■
Enter and leave the polling place at any time
during a count (their places may be taken by
other appointed scrutineers), and
■■
inspect any ballot paper.
Scrutineers may not:
■■
Remain in a polling place without having first
provided a completed scrutineer appointment
form,
■■
enter a polling place without a scrutineer
identification,
■■
help with clearing polling places or the
removal of material from the polling place,
■■
touch ballot papers, or
■■
unreasonably delay or interfere in the progress
of counting the votes.
For more information, see the scrutineer’s
handbook at www.aec.gov.au/scrutineers.
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Section 4
Election advertising, funding and statistics
Electoral advertising
The Australian Parliament has determined that
the Electoral Act should not regulate the content
of political messages contained in electoral
advertising. Rather, the intent of the legislation is
to ensure electors are informed about the source
of political advertising and to ensure that political
advertising does not mislead or deceive electors
about the way in which a vote must be cast.
Accordingly, the AEC has no role or responsibility
in deciding whether political messages published
or broadcast in relation to a federal election are
true or untrue.
Authorisation
Section 328 (1) of the Electoral Act requires all
electoral advertisements to include the name
and street address of the person who authorised
the advertisement and, except in the case of
newspapers, the name and place of business of
the printer at the end.
Electoral advertisements must be authorised at
all times, and not just during an election period.
How-to-vote cards
How-to-vote cards are any printed medium that
lists the name of two or more candidates and
directs or encourages electors to mark their
preference for the candidates in a particular order.
Section 328B of the Electoral Act provides that
a person must not publish how-to-vote cards
from the issue of the writs until close of the polls
unless the name of the registered political party
or candidate on whose behalf the cards have
been published is clearly printed at either the top
or bottom of the cards. This requirement applied
for the first time in the 2013 federal election.
The other authorisation details from section 328
of the Electoral Act (i.e. name and address of the
person who authorised the card and the name
and address of the printer) must also appear on
the how to vote card.
Further information regarding electoral
advertising authorisation requirements is
available in the AEC’s electoral backgrounder on
electoral advertising, which is available at
www.aec.gov.au/electoral-advertising.
Media blackout
Under Schedule 2 of the Broadcasting Services
Act 1992, which is administered by the Australian
Communications and Media Authority (ACMA),
election advertising for radio and television is
subject to a ‘blackout’ from midnight on the
Wednesday before election day to the end of
polling on the Saturday.
The blackout does not include the internet.
Further information is available at ACMA website
www.acma.gov.au.
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Election funding
Federal election statistics
A candidate or Senate group is eligible for
election funding if they obtain at least 4 per cent
of the first preference vote in the division or the
state or territory they contest.
The last federal election was held on Saturday
7 September 2013. Comparative analysis can be
done using the following resources.
The amount to be paid is calculated by
multiplying the number of first preference votes
obtained by the current election funding rate
www.aec.gov.au/funding-rate.
Election funding is paid automatically as soon as
possible after the 20th day following election day.
Any balance of entitlement will be paid following
the conclusion of the count of votes.
■■
Enrolment statistics
www.aec.gov.au/enrolment-statistics
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Nominations, polling and voting statistics
www.aec.gov.au/Elections/Federal_Elections
■■
Results
results.aec.gov.au
The AEC will issue a media release and tweet
regarding the payment of election funding.
Media Guide 2016 federal election17