The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) is urging Victorians to respond if they have received a request to explain why they appear to have failed to vote in the last state election in November 2022.
The VEC issued close to 300,000 ‘Apparent failure to vote notices’ earlier this month and recipients must respond by the 28-day deadline with a detailed explanation.
The notice is an opportunity to avoid a fine if non-voters provide a detailed response with supporting documentation. The VEC is required to automatically fine non-respondents or those who do not provide a valid reason for failing to vote; the penalty is $92.
Acting Electoral Commissioner Dana Fleming said that recipients should contact the VEC for assistance if unsure what to do, rather than ignore the notice.
“If you need help understanding what the notice means and what you need to do, you can call us on 1300 551 575 or visit our website at vec.vic.gov.au,” Ms Fleming said.
“Information on what to do if you receive an apparent failure to vote notice will also be available to view in 25 in-language videos,’ Ms Fleming added.
“I also encourage you to sign up to our VoterAlert service, to make sure you’re notified whenever there’s a State or local council election you need to vote in.”
The VEC issued VoterAlert reminders by SMS and email at key points in the election to 2.4 million enrolled voters who had provided their details. They included reminders on the close of roll date and a reminder to vote on Saturday 26 November. People can sign up at at any time to be reminded to vote in all future state and local council elections at vec.vic.gov.au/VoterAlert
