Forgot to vote in Saturday's Federal Election?
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Then you could be up for a fine or even a day in court.
If you didn't show up at a polling place and get your name checked off the electoral roll on election day (or didn't pre-poll vote, postal vote or phone vote), a $20 penalty will arrive in the mail from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) in the coming weeks.
And if you do get a fine, the easiest thing to do is to pay online - but, if you did vote or have a "valid and sufficient reason for failing to vote" you can contest the fine.
"If you are found to have voted in the election, or you provide a valid and sufficient reason for failing to vote, or pay the $20 administrative penalty within the prescribed time, the matter will be finalised and you will receive no further correspondence from the AEC regarding your apparent failure to vote," the commission says.
"It is at the discretion of the AEC's Divisional Returning Officer (DRO) for each electorate to determine whether you have provided a valid and sufficient reason for not voting.
"The DRO will consider the merits of your individual case and take into account any specific circumstances at the polling places within their division in making a determination."
If you don't have a good reason and you don't pay in time, the fine could blow out to in excess of $200, as well as court fees.
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Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
