The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia 7KH)HGHUDO(OHFWLRQ Report of the Inquiry into the conduct of the 1998 Federal Election and matters related thereto House of Representatives Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters June 2000 Canberra © Commonwealth of Australia 2000 ISBN Photograph courtesy of the Australian Electoral Commission Cover by Octavo &RQWHQWV Foreword...............................................................................................................................................ix Membership of the Committee..............................................................................................................xi Terms of reference ............................................................................................................................. xiii List of abbreviations.............................................................................................................................xv List of recommendations.................................................................................................................... xvii Executive summary ......................................................................................................................... xxvii Chapter 1 – Introduction...................................................................................................... xxvii Chapter 2 – Pre-election ...................................................................................................... xxvii Chapter 3 – Election day....................................................................................................... xxix Chapter 4 – After the close of polls..................................................................................... xxix Chapter 5 – Other issues....................................................................................................... xxx THE REPORT 1 Introduction...........................................................................................................1 The 1998 Federal Election ........................................................................................................... 1 Scope and conduct of the inquiry................................................................................................. 4 Structure of the report .................................................................................................................. 6 2 Pre-election ...........................................................................................................9 Selection of AEC staff................................................................................................................ 9 Other elections on polling day................................................................................................ 12 Public awareness of the election............................................................................................ 12 iv Enrolment.................................................................................................................................. 14 Accuracy of the Commonwealth Electoral Roll .......................................................................... 17 Offensive names......................................................................................................................... 21 Access to Roll............................................................................................................................. 24 Nomination................................................................................................................................ 27 Senate nomination issues .......................................................................................................... 28 Death of a candidate .................................................................................................................. 30 Independent candidate nomination issues................................................................................. 32 Political campaigns.................................................................................................................. 32 Authorisation of electoral advertising ......................................................................................... 34 Caretaker conventions ............................................................................................................... 36 How To Vote cards..................................................................................................................... 37 Truth in political advertising........................................................................................................ 42 Dear neighbour letters................................................................................................................ 44 Declaration voting .................................................................................................................... 45 Increase in declaration voting..................................................................................................... 47 Pre-poll voting............................................................................................................................. 48 Antarctic voters........................................................................................................................... 52 Postal voting............................................................................................................................... 52 Mobile polling ........................................................................................................................... 60 Remote mobile polling team 16, Northern Territory ................................................................... 61 Problems on other mobile teams................................................................................................ 64 3 Election day.........................................................................................................67 Polling booths........................................................................................................................... 67 Polling booth concerns............................................................................................................... 69 Ballot paper shortages ............................................................................................................... 71 Railway Side polling booth – Alice Springs ................................................................................ 72 Voting on election day ............................................................................................................. 78 Assisted voting ........................................................................................................................... 78 Provisional voting ....................................................................................................................... 84 Voting by prisoners..................................................................................................................... 89 Fraudulent enrolment and voting ........................................................................................... 90 Accuracy of the Commonwealth Electoral Roll .......................................................................... 90 v Security of ballot papers............................................................................................................. 91 Fraud in particular Divisions....................................................................................................... 92 Dual and multiple voting............................................................................................................. 93 Voting in the name of a deceased person.................................................................................. 97 Conclusion.................................................................................................................................. 98 4 After the close of poll.........................................................................................99 Conduct of the count ............................................................................................................... 99 Distribution of first preferences................................................................................................... 99 Two candidate preferred count...................................................................................................99 Fresh scrutiny........................................................................................................................... 102 Preliminary scrutiny of declaration votes.................................................................................. 102 Declaration of poll..................................................................................................................... 103 Recount procedures ................................................................................................................. 104 Scrutiny of Senate ballot papers .............................................................................................. 104 National tally room.................................................................................................................... 105 Compulsory voting................................................................................................................