The federal election is almost over — the AEC is finalising the count, but Scott Morrison's government has been returned.

So what happens now to the millions of ballot papers filled out and stuffed into ballot boxes across the country?

The ABC's You Ask, We Answer project asked the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to explain where it all ended up, and the answer might surprise you.

Are the ballot papers kept or destroyed?

According to the AEC, all used and unused ballot papers must be kept for a set period of time after each election.

The AEC is still in the process of counting this year's votes. ( Supplied: Australian Electoral Commission )

The House of Representatives ballots are kept for six to 12 months, while the Senate ballot papers must be kept for seven years.

That's because senators serve longer terms than members of parliament.

"Terms for senators are longer — six years — than those that sit in the House of Representatives — approximately three years depending on date of next election," an AEC spokesperson said.

Ballot papers also must stick around in case an election result is challenged.

If someone wants to dispute a result, they must submit a petition to the Court of Disputed Returns within 40 days of the return of the writs, which happens after the AEC has completed an exhaustive count and declared a result.

This year, the writs must be returned by June 28.

So where are the ballot papers stored?

More than 50 million ballot papers were printed for the 2019 federal election, so a fair amount of space is required to store them.

The AEC said they were packed into warehouses around the country.

Then what happens when they need to be destroyed?

All paper can be recycled except the really small stuff like shredded paper. ( Rebecca Brewin )

Many of you were interested in whether the ballot papers were thrown in the bin or recycled after an election.

According to the AEC, when the ballot papers no longer need to be stored, they are pulped and recycled in Australia.

You might also be happy to know that all ballot papers are made from recycled paper.

What about all the other bits of paper and cardboard?

How-to-vote cards are handed out en masse on election day. ( ABC News: Danielle Bonica )

Cardboard polling booths, signs, how-to-vote cards — an endless amount of paper is used at every federal election.

So to make sure it can be reused, the AEC provides recycling bins at the exits doors of polling places for how-to-vote cards and other bits of paper and recycles all its cardboard.

"The cardboard screens and ballot boxes used at polling places are made largely from recycled materials and are recycled after use," an AEC spokesperson said.

"If the 'host' venue for a polling place, such as a local school, requests, it can retain [the cardboard] for its own use and other AEC materials that would otherwise be taken away and recycled after the election."