Organisation : Tasmanian Electoral Commission
Facility : Find your nearest polling place
State : Tasmania
Country : Australia
Find your nearest polling place : https://tec.tas.gov.au/Services/MyReps/Index.php
Home Page : http://www.tec.tas.gov.au/
Remember, you can vote at any polling place in Tasmania on Polling Day.
What happens at House of Assembly elections :
Enrolment Period & Issue of Writs :
The elections begin with the enrolment period and the issue of the Writs of election. The writ is a document which commands the returning officer to hold an election and specifies the dates for the close of nominations, polling day, and the last possible date for the return of the writ. House of Assembly elections begin with the proclamation dissolving the House of Assembly and end with the return of the writ.
The Governor issues five writs for a House of Assembly general election, one for each of the five divisions: Bass, Braddon, Denison, Franklin and Lyons
Polling & the Tally :
Voting at House of Assembly elections is compulsory. You can vote at any polling place in Tasmania on polling day. If you cannot vote in person on polling day, you must vote early.
Voting before polling day :
Pre-poll voting, postal voting and express voting are available as soon as the list of candidates is confirmed.
Pre-poll voting :
Pre-poll voting allows electors to vote in person at electoral offices within Tasmania and across Australia at Australian Electoral Commission divisional offices. Pre-poll voting is available during regular electoral office hours soon after the announcement of candidates until the Friday before polling day. To find your nearest divisional office, call 13 23 26 or enter your postcode at Contact the AEC to find contact numbers for your local office.
Postal voting :
Postal voting is available to all Tasmanian electors who cannot get to a polling place on polling day. Voters must first apply for a postal vote. The ballot is then mailed to the voter, who completes it and returns it to the Returning Officer by post. Overseas voters can apply for a postal vote online. Postal voters within Tasmania can print a postal vote application form, or pick one up from the nearest post office or electoral office.
Express voting :
It is a new service which allows electors to receive a ballot paper image by email or fax. The voter must then complete the ballot, sign a declaration and return the ballot and declaration to the returning officer by post, email or fax. Express voting is only available to voters in remote areas or overseas. While express voting is significantly faster than postal voting, the secrecy of the ballot cannot be guaranteed.
After Polling Day :
** 10 day period after polling day
** There is a 10 day period after polling day for postal votes to return from overseas and interstate. During this period Returning Officers will organise formality rechecking on all ballot papers and progressively accept and process returning postal votes.
** First preference votes for each candidate are then amalgamated before a final check of the ballot papers.
** On the Monday before the final cut-off for postal votes, Returning Officers may commence a provisional distribution of the ballot papers received by candidates who have been elected on first preferences. Completing a provisional distribution of these ballot papers speeds up the scrutiny process.
Declaration of the poll :
The Declaration of the Poll is a short ceremony at which the Returning Officer formally announces the successful candidates. Successful candidates are asked to speak, followed by other candidates present who may wish to do so. The Declaration of the Poll is open to candidates, the media and the public