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Australian Electoral Commission
The AEC is reminding residents of the Cook electorate that Saturday 13 April 2024 is voting day for the Cook by-election.
Anyone who has applied for, and received, their postal vote must complete it and return it to the AEC as soon as possible. You must have completed your postal vote by 6pm local time on Saturday, but do not wait.
The legislation allows up to 13 days after voting day for postal votes to be received back to the AEC. Once a postal vote has been completed, voters should put them in the mail as soon as possible.
Please be kind to AEC staff. There are around 500 temporary staff across the Cook electorate - these people are everyday members of the community delivering a process to assist voters.
Australia has a proud history of peaceful federal by-elections. The majority of voters understand and respect that when they come to vote in what is a community atmosphere.
On the green ballot paper, you need to put a '1' in the box next to the candidate who is your first choice, '2' in the box beside your second choice and so on, until you have numbered every box.
You need to number every box for your vote to count.
Results will be updated on the AEC’s Tally Room from after 6pm on Saturday. A link to the Tally Room will be available on the AEC’s website on voting night.
All votes cast on Saturday will be counted that night as well as the majority of pre-poll votes cast. The AEC will also start to count postal votes however, the AEC can receive postal votes back until close of business on Friday 26 April which is the legislated 13 days after voting day the AEC must wait.
An indication of a result on the night are always made by electoral analysts and commentators. Whether or not a clear indication of a result is available on the night depends entirely on how close the margin is.
The AEC never officially declares a result on the night. We have to count each ballot paper twice due to a process called ‘fresh scrutiny’ – this occurs in the days after polling night.
Each aspect of the count has to be mathematically certain before an official AEC declaration or the return of the writ.
Further information about the count can be found here.
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The AEC acknowledges the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognises their continuing connection to land, waters, culture and community. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.