Counting the Votes
Election Night Counts in Polling Places
At the close of voting at 6.00pm on election day, election officials in the polling places count the following ballot papers:
Mayor – if there is a Mayoral election, the first preference votes for each candidate and the informal ballot papers are counted and recorded.
Councillor - the first preference votes for each candidate, and where applicable, the first preference votes for each group marked in its group voting square are counted and recorded.
Referendum or Poll – if there is a Referendum or Poll the Yes, No and informal ballot papers are counted and recorded.
Election Night Counts in Returning Officer’s office
At 6.00pm on election day election officials in the Returning Officer’s office will count the Mayor, Councillor, Referendum and Poll ballot papers for the following vote types:
- Pre Poll
- Postal
- Declared Institution (DI)
NSWEC Virtual Tally Room (VTR)
All totals for Mayor, Councillor, Referendum and Poll ballot papers will be posted progressively on election night on the VTR website.
Check count figures will be updated progressively on the website on the days after Election day.
The final distribution of preferences for Mayor and Councillor, and the final results for Referendums and Polls, will be progressively placed on the website during the week after Election day.
Recount
Any candidate can request a recount of ballot papers. This request must be in writing to the Returning Officer within 24 hours of being notified of the election result, setting out the reasons for the request and signed by the candidate. A deposit to cover the cost of the recount must also be lodged.
It is also open to the Electoral Commissioner to direct that a recount be undertaken.
