Who Got it WRONG Missabotti?

Missabotti Polling Place might once have been like this:

Yes, mistakes may be made and there is no correction to the mistake except possibly for a Court of Disputed Returns decision - which will not happen where there is a clear winner. I can guess exactly how the Missabotti failure occurred; however any elector who read the printed instructions on their ballot paper would have simply rejected the erroneous advice of the paid temporary polling official.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-30/missabotti-informal-vote-skyrockets-federal-election/105307104

Creating informals: Vote with just “1”?

Was Missabotti 2025 a tragedy?

Missabotti, NSW, is a small voting centre (polling place), serving a hundred or so voters, most likely staffed by two Temporary Election Workers (TEW). In 2013 the electors at Missabotti Community Centre (Cowper Division) cast formal votes, apart from one (1) informal ballot, the national lowest by percentage of informal ballots. In 2022 there were 7 informal, being 6.73%. In 2025 this polling place had 50 informal ballots, being 45.05%.

The media report I saw said that the AEC was investigating. If so, I have not located anything published. However, no investigation can possibly change an informal ballot paper into a formal one.

I am not privy to the details of that polling place and I doubt they will be authoritatively published any day soon. (Each election, the AEC commendably undertakes a full review of the informality incidences.) The media report indicates electors had been (wrongly) advised by the issuing official to vote as they do for a State of NSW election and may partially do for the Upper House. In how many other places did that happen? (The AEC is fully aware of the State variance in formal vote requirements.)

I suppose it is ultimately the elector’s responsibility to read the instructions on the ballot paper and follow the printed directions. Nonetheless, surely it is sad to see those wasted ballots. I think it was a needless tragedy. 

Although the Commonwealth and the AEC are the “gorillas in the room”, the State systems are robustly independent and longer-lived. Here I am claiming first hand experience of NSW and Victoria (which are not identical). Other States may well have systems comparable to NSW and/or Victoria.

Do you know that many people serve in all available elections? They may not fully distinguish between the systems in use. Some polling officials certainly do not make the distinction and apparently operate from a memory.

The AEC 2025 Election Report covers recruitment and training of Temporary Election Workers (TEW). The AEC had not managed to fill all of the available positions, but a location like Missabotti could not have less than two for the day. Concerning AEC election training they report (p43): 

For the 2025 election, TEW training requirements consisted of:

• A mandatory suite of online training modules, whichcovers topics such as political and issue neutrality, security, disinformation, health and wellbeing, and inclusive and respectful service to voters.
• One or more of 39 role-specific training programs, which use a learning approach that mixed online, face-to-face instructor-led training and/or briefings, and training videos.
• The election procedures handbook, which is the primary reference document for all polling officials.

This approach enabled us to deliver quality, targeted training to TEW employees in the short period available to engage and prepare them to succeed in their roles once the election was announced. We achieved an overall TEW training compliance rate of 99 per cent for the election.

Well, the AEC may have had 99% compliance with the commendable training program. However, human nature and the experience of years makes a difference n what officials actually do! Moreover, the two TEWs at Missabotti would have to know the lot! So I imagine to be the case.

The Commonwealth legislation requires ballots for the House to have valid preferences for every candidate or be deemed informal, even though the voter’s intention may be quite clear. Anyone who is involved in State elections, where full preferential voting is NOT mandated, can easily see why some State experienced officials may give incorrect direction. They follow the State pattern.

The ballot paper and the official AEC voting compartment poster are quite clear about numbering every square - with numbers!. Nonetheless, on the day, I have myself been advised by the issuing official in a Commonwealth election to just write “1” in a square. I think this has happened more than once. The officer I recall most recently was probably 30 years of age and very competent in English.

A Confession

I have little patience with the AECs "short period available". As a Returning Officer I had 3 weeks to set up a whole election, if I was lucky! I depended largely on my previous election diary and staffing details. Fortunately, the mails were better back then!

Yours sincerely

Allen Hampton

Coburg

achamptonmob@gmail.com

Images courtesy AEC website; copyright of Commonwealth

Reference: Australian Electoral Commission 2025 Federal Election Report, page 43