Stamp of approval for postal voting

DANDENONG Residents’ and Ratepayers’ Association (DRRA) has called for a move to postal voting at the 2008 council elections after complaints over the city’s attendance voting system.
DRRA secretary Janet Cox this week said the group had received complaints from residents attending voting booths at last Saturday’s council elections that it was an inconvenience to vote on a Saturday.
Ms Cox said people also did not like being ‘pushed around’ at polling booths by how to vote card distributors working on behalf of candidates.
“I know of four wards where people complained bitterly about having to come to attendance voting,” she said.
“(Postal voting) would also be cheaper for candidates, not having to print off how to vote cards, and not so many rounds of fliers.”
Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) returning officer for Greater Dandenong Bill Irvine said the choice was up to the council, and that attendance voting was rare compared to postal which had grown in popularity among municipalities.
Mr Irvine said the difference in costs were negligible, and that attendance figures held by the VEC showed there was little difference between postal and attendance voting.