Suspected postal vote tampering in two local council elections were last week referred for inquiry.
City of Whittlesea’s Lalor Ward and Knox City Council’s Baird Ward election results have both been submitted to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for review by the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC).
The VEC detected the return of multiple ballot papers that appeared to be from the same voters in both wards after the close of voting. Each return’s voter declaration was carefully examined, and a number of returns were set aside as rejected.
Electoral Commissioner Sven Bluemmel expressed disappointment that it appeared election interference had occurred, following a similar incident that occurred in 2020.
“Interfering with an election is a serious matter with significant penalties,” he said.
“Electoral integrity is paramount, and it must be upheld to maintain the community’s trust in their elections.
“We [have also] referred the matters to Victoria Police and the Local Government Inspectorate (LGI) for investigation of electoral offences under the Local Government Act.
“Following a similar incident detected in the 2020 local council elections, we implemented further safeguards and monitoring tools for the 2024 postal elections.”
Chief Municipal Inspector Michael Stefanovic AM said the LGI was working closely with the VEC on the matter.
“On initial review, the matters that have been referred to the LGI concern potential offences of tampering or interfering with ballot papers that are two of the more serious offences under the Local Government Act 2020, each carrying a substantial fine or imprisonment for up to five years,” he said.
