The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has sprung into action to initiate its workforce, resources and COVID-19 safety measures for the 2022 Federal election, to be held on 21 May.
Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers said that while the impact of the continuing pandemic added complexity to conducting what was already Australia’s “largest peacetime logistical exercise,” Australian voters could have confidence in the voting options available in this election.
“We’ll be operating hundreds of early voting centres and thousands of polling places on election day, and Australians can feel comfortable to vote in-person,” Mr Rogers said.
“While elections are in-person community events and we expect voters to turn out, Australians who need a postal vote can now apply for one,” he said.
“The immediate priority for all Australians is to go to the AEC website to check your enrolment and make sure it is up to date by Monday 18 April.
“If you’re not enrolled, you can’t have your say.”
Mr Rogers said the AEC had been planning many and various scenarios of running a Federal election with COVID-19 safety measures in place since the pandemic began.
He said many of the safety measures in place were things that Australians would be very familiar with by now, including social distancing, the use of hand sanitiser and the work of hygiene officers at every polling place.
“We are committed to the safety of our temporary polling staff and voters who visit a voting centre this federal election,” he said.
Mr Rogers said the AEC had been in regular contact with Federal, State and Territory Health Departments regarding its planning and had learnt valuable lessons from recent elections run both here in Australia and internationally.
