Thousands admit to multiple votes in 2013 federal election, AEC tells Senate estimates hearing

Updated

Nearly 2,000 Australians have admitted voting more than once in last year's federal election, electoral officials say, with one voter casting as many as 15 ballots.

Following the September poll, the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) investigated almost 19,000 instances of multiple voting.

Several thousand have been confirmed as being caused by clerical errors by electoral officials.

But Acting Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers has told a Senate estimates hearing that his organisation is taking a closer look at nearly 2,000 other cases.

He said "the greater majority of those, over 81 per cent" were elderly, had poor literacy skills, or had a "low comprehension of the electoral process".

We asked how thought the AEC could stop people from voting multiple times. Here is what you said.

The Commission says 128 people voted more than twice. That includes 92 people who were identified as having voted three times and 22 people who voted four times.

Liberal Senator Dean Smith asked Mr Rogers for an explanation of the figures.

"What's the excuse given with those in the two, three, four bracket?" he said.

"Because I'm not so sure there's a legitimate excuse for those that have voted six, nine, 12, 15 times."

Mr Rogers said the AEC was working with the Australian Federal Police and Director of Public Prosecutions to investigate the cases.

"You're correct, Senator, and this is a process we're going through at the moment so I can't give you the reasons," he said.

Mr Rogers used the Senate hearing to again apologise for the AEC's errors.

The commission has been under scrutiny for losing nearly 1,400 Senate votes in Western Australia, and Mr Rogers's boss, Ed Killesteyn, resigned last week.

Mr Rogers also revealed the by-election caused by former prime minister Kevin Rudd's departure cost more than $1 million.

And he says the fresh Senate election in Western Australia will cost in excess of $20 million.

"That does not include public funding which I think ... will be in the order of $3 million," he said.

Topics: federal-elections, aged-care, federal-government, australia

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