The Australian Electoral Commission has said ticks would likely be counted as Yes votes, while a cross would likely not be counted, a decision that has attracted the ire of the federal Coalition.
abc.net.au/news/peter-dutton-writes-to-aec-tick-cross-referendum-votes/102771676Opposition Leader Peter Dutton will write to the Australian Electoral Commission , seeking answers about how it will count ticks and crosses on votes in the upcoming Voice to Parliament referendum.
Mr Dutton, who will co-write his letter with Shadow Attorney-General Michaelia Cash, said the method "just stinks" and he would make that clear to the AEC."If a tick counts for Yes than a cross should count for no, it's as clear as that.Tom Rogers expects the vast majority of voters to follow instructions on how to cast a vote."You can't have a situation where they're trying to provide favour to one side in a democratic election," he said.
But the AEC said the provision had been in place since 1988, throughout federal elections and referendums, and was the accepted legal advice." The AEC does not have any discretion to simply ignore savings provisions. They are a long-standing legislative requirement." The spokesperson said in the 1999 referendum, the rate of informal votes was just 0.86 per cent, and of those, many would not have been related to ticks and crosses.
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