Electronic voting or ballot counting machines
Phillip Sweeney made this Freedom of Information request to Australian Electoral Commission
This request has been closed to new correspondence from the public body. Contact us if you think it ought be re-opened.
Dear Australian Electoral Commission,
The document or documents I seek would be:
(i) those that would confirm whether electronic voting machines (as opposed to paper ballots) were used anywhere in Australia during the last Federal Election; and
(ii) those that would confirm whether paper ballot electronic/mechanical scanning and counting machines were used anywhere in Australia during the last Federal Election.
Note: This would not include spreadsheets to tabulate voting results reported from manual ballot counts polling booths and mail-in voting centres.
Yours faithfully,
Phillip Sweeney
Thank you for contacting us.
This is an automatic response from the Australian Electoral Commission to confirm we have received your email.
For more information on enrolling to vote, federal elections or the AEC, visit www.aec.gov.au.
Please do not respond to this email.
Phillip Sweeney
Right to Know
Dear Mr Sweeney
I refer to your email dated 26 November 2020 1:07 PM in which you request
(‘your FOI Request’) to the Australian Electoral Commission (‘AEC’) under
the [1]Freedom of Information Act 1982 for access to documents relating to
use of electronic voting or ballot counting machines at the 2019 federal
election
I have taken your request to be for documents:
(i) that would confirm whether electronic voting machines (as
opposed to paper ballots) were used anywhere in Australia during the last
Federal Election; and
(ii) that would confirm whether paper ballot electronic/mechanical
scanning and counting machines were used anywhere in Australia during the
last Federal Election,
noting that this would not include spreadsheets to tabulate voting results
reported from manual ballot counts polling booths and mail-in voting
centres.
We received your request on 26 November 2020 and the 30 day statutory
period for processing your request commenced from the day after that date.
You should therefore expect a decision from us by 28 December 2020. The
period of 30 days may be extended if we need to consult third parties,
impose a charge or for other reasons. We will advise you if this happens.
You will be notified of any charges in relation to your request as soon as
possible, before we process any requested documents or impose a final
charge.
Please note that information released under the FOI Act may later be
published online on the AEC’s disclosure log [2]at
http://www.aec.gov.au/information-access..., subject to certain
exceptions. (For example, personal information will not be published where
this would be unreasonable.)
We will contact you using the email address that you provided. Please
advise if you would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact. If
you have any questions, please contact me at:
email: [email address]
fax:[Phone Number Automatically Hidden]7
post: Locked bag 4007, Canberra ACT 2601
telephone[Phone Number Automatically Hidden]
Owen Jones
Owen Jones | Senior Lawyer
Legal Services Section | Legal & Procurement Branch
Australian Electoral Commission
T: [Phone Number Automatically Hidden] | F: [Phone Number Automatically Hidden]
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This email may contain legal advice that is subject to legal professional
privilege. Care should be taken to avoid unintended waiver of that
privilege. The Australian Electoral Commission’s Chief Legal Officer
should be consulted prior to any decision to disclose the existence or
content of any advice contained in this email to a third party.
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Dear Mr Sweeney
I refer your email dated 26 November 2020 1:07 PM to the Australian
Electoral Commission (the ‘AEC’) in which you request under the [1]Freedom
of Information Act 1982 (the ‘FOI Act’) access to documents about
electronic voting or ballot counting machines.
I attach my scanned letter to you dated 4 December 2020 giving you my
decision about your FOI Request.
Regards
Owen Jones
Owen Jones | Senior Lawyer
Legal Services Section | Legal & Procurement Branch
Australian Electoral Commission
T: (02) 6271 4528 | F: (02) 6293 7657
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[2]Australian Electoral Commission logo [3]Australian Electoral Commission
This email may contain legal advice that is subject to legal professional
privilege. Care should be taken to avoid unintended waiver of that
privilege. The Australian Electoral Commission’s Chief Legal Officer
should be consulted prior to any decision to disclose the existence or
content of any advice contained in this email to a third party.
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