15 September 2008

Counting is continuing in the NSW Local Government elections and is not expected to conclude until Friday 26 September.

Results will be decided at different times throughout the next two weeks, some as early as tomorrow but will depend on the complexity of individual counts. This is determined largely by how electors marked their ballot paper, particularly in council areas where there was an option of voting above or below the line.

An estimated 4 million people voted in 148 council areas across the State on Saturday, 13 September.  In addition, 27 mayoral elections were held and 22 councils had referendums and/or polls.

1. Mayoral Elections

Councils who popularly elect their mayor are listed on the NSW Electoral Commission’s (NSWEC) Virtual Tally Room which can be found at www.elections.nsw.gov.au

A mayoral candidate must obtain an absolute majority (50% of the vote plus 1 vote) to win.

Returning officers are expected to begin distributing preferences tomorrow to finalise all mayoral contests. The duration of the distribution process will depend on the flow of preferences, which voters determine when they mark their ballot paper.

2. Councillor Elections

Councillor elections are being counted locally in 74 council areas. This involves council areas with simple ballot papers where there is no above or below the line voting. Preferences will be distributed from tomorrow and final results should be known by the end of the week.

Refer to the Local Government Counting Centre (LGCC) schedule on the Virtual Tally Room for those elections being finalised locally by Returning Officers.

Riverwood Counting Centre

The NSWEC will begin the process of delivering ballot papers to its Riverwood counting centre from tomorrow. Some 400 data entry staff will begin entering ballot paper information into a specially designed computer programme over two shifts. This will involve up to one million ballot papers and includes those where voters have marked their preferences below the line or provided more than a single preference above the line.

Refer to the LGCC schedule online for dates on when individual counts will take place. The schedule will be updated twice daily and will only show those councils included in the next 48 hour counting schedule. Dates will be allocated as councils are assigned to the counting schedule.

A video on the Riverwood vote counting operation is available at www.elections.nsw.gov.au/media

3. Referendums

Referendums were counted on Saturday night in each polling place but cannot be finalised until tomorrow to include those returned by post. The results of referendums are binding on councils. The questions and results can been accessed through the Virtual Tally Room at www.elections.nsw.gov.au.

4. Polls

Polls will be counted Tuesday and Wednesday and the final results posted online. Polls are not binding on councils and voting was not compulsory.

Recounts

Once a result is declared by the NSWEC, candidates will have 24 hours to request a recount if they dispute the outcome.

Media Contact: Adrian Kerr, NSW Electoral Commission

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