THERE is more frustration for the troubled City of Whittlesea council, with voters in the Lalor Ward forced to go back to the polls after the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) uncovered voting fraud in the November count.
The investigation, which saw Victoria Police and the VEC involved, saw 81 ballots compromised, which could have affected the result of the election.
In the original results, Steven Kozmevski was elected by just 39 votes from runner-up candidate Ellen McNaught after a distribution of preferences in what was a tightly contested seat.
But the investigation found that there were 24 fraudulent votes which were duplicated, putting last-place candidate Nicholas Hajichristou as first preference.
There is no suggestion that any candidate was involved in the fraud, according to the VEC.
Another 57 stolen ballots were also considered which also had Mr Hajichristou as first preference, but they were counted and not recovered.
With the VEC making an application about their suspected fraud votes to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), it was also referred to the Local Government Inspectorate and Victoria Police.
As a result, VCAT vice-president, Judge Caitlin English, ruled that there was sufficient proof that it potentially affected the outcome of the election.
“I am satisfied the electors were proven to have been prevented from recording their votes effectively according to their own preference,” she said.
The decision means that Mr Kozmevski now no longer holds the office, forcing another significant change in the City of Whittlesea offices.
In recent weeks, Mayor Councillor Aidan McLindon was suspended from the office for six months and banned from performing councillor duties, with current Mayor, Martin Taylor, installed at a follow-up unscheduled council meeting on April 24.
Acting Electoral Commissioner Dana Fleming warned voters that there would be consequences for those who tried to circumvent the voting process.
“To those who seek to subvert our electoral processes, there will be consequences to your actions. We will detect your efforts, and we will act,” she said.
For now, the VEC is currently working on a date for the postal by-election for the Lalor Ward.
“We will inform the community about the arrangements for the by-election as soon as they are agreed and work closely with prospective candidates to let them know what they need to do to nominate,” Ms Fleming added.
“This has demonstrated that our processes to protect democracy work and uphold electoral integrity. Victorians can be confident that their vote is safe and will not be undermined by those seeking to do wrong.”