00:00:41
S1: The Victorian election is coming up at the end of November. Let's find out a bit more about it. Let's find a lot more about it and speak to the Commissioner, which is really great, of Sven Blum to give up his time. Sven, great to meet you. Thanks so much for your time and hope I can call you. Even though you are the Commissioner.
00:00:56
S2: You certainly can. Peter, it's an absolute pleasure to be here.
00:00:58
S1: Now, of course, the date is all set and I guess all systems are in in preparation.
00:01:04
S2: Yeah, absolutely. It's got to be the biggest one ever. We've got over 4.7 million people on the roll. And Election day is Saturday, the 28th of November.
00:01:13
S1: Let's go through a few dates. I guess in terms of enrollment, of course, the people have maybe turned 18 in the last little while, or perhaps they've moved addresses, etc.. What's the kind of cut off time for that?
00:01:23
S2: Yeah, the cut off time is 8 p.m. on Tuesday, the 3rd of November. Now that just so happens to be Melbourne Cup Day. So that's an easy way to remember it and make sure that you're enrolled and your enrolment is up to date by Melbourne Cup day.
00:01:37
S1: Okay. And I guess enrollments in the usual kind of ways.
00:01:40
S2: Yeah, that's exactly right. Same as before. So if you are turning 18 and even if you haven't turned 18 yet, but you will turn 18 by Election Day, you can enroll now and then you'll become eligible to vote as soon as you turn 18.
00:01:52
S1: Now, I guess for the candidates, there's a sort of cut off periods as to when they have to say, yes, I'm putting my hand up. Is that a time come and gone yet?
00:02:01
S2: Oh no. That is coming up in November as well. All of the dates specifically are available on our website, but candidate nominations themselves open on Tuesday the 4th of November, and they close on Monday the 9th of November. So that's that's quite a tight time frame. Um, that was changed by legislative change earlier this year. But obviously, uh, say for parties and individuals, clearly they can already do that before that date. But Tuesday, the 4th of November is the first day that you can actually then formally register as a candidate.
00:02:33
S1: And I guess that then gives you as an organization, if you like, a time to put information up on the website and that sort of thing, that's great.
00:02:40
S2: And importantly for us, it's also the time that once we've closed nominations, that's when we do what we call the ballot draw. That's where we randomly determine the order that candidates appear on all the various ballot papers. And of course, until we've done that, we can't start printing the ballot material itself. And of course, we have to be ready to have that in all corners of the state by the time early voting opens on the 18th of November.
00:03:07
S1: Well, you preempted my next question because that seems to have become very, very popular over the years. And I guess as popular today as ever, that the early voting that that seems to be an option that people love to take up.
00:03:17
S2: Yeah. That's correct. So last state election in 2022, we had a bit of a 50% of Victorians voting early. This time we think that might go as high as 60%. So we're actually getting ready for that. We've actually increased our early voting footprint quite substantially. So last time we had about 150 early voting centers across the state. This time we're going to have over 200.
00:03:40
S1: Sounds like you're very much in readiness. This is something. You're right. This is your Christmas. I guess in a way.
00:03:45
S2: Well, it's a it's a rather stressful Christmas. But then I guess Christmas can be stressful as well. Um, and now look, this, this is what we do every time we deliver an election. We, we learn lessons. We, we put in place the lessons we learned from last time. And we just, we just want the best possible election. We can, we can do it. It takes years. I mean, we're already doing some of the planning for the 2030 state election. So it's a it's a it's a big job. But we're ready.
00:04:09
S1: So people can pre-poll from the 18th of November. I guess they can also register to vote by post if they choose to do that.
00:04:17
S2: Yeah. That's correct. And specifically. So, so, uh, in addition to the, the standard, um, postal vote, you can also apply for a Braille postal vote. Okay. That's open till the 2nd of November as well. So that's, that's another option that's available.
00:04:33
S1: Alright. What's involved with that then Sven, what do people need to do for that? Because that's, that's sort of getting close.
00:04:38
S2: Yeah. it is getting close a couple of weeks away. So for that, the best thing to do if you can is go on to our website and, you know, you can obviously use a screen reader on that when, when we, um, when we prepare our, uh, our website, whenever we do any updates, we make sure that it's, um, it's sensitive to, to screen readers and accessibility tools like that and have a search for, for Braille or you can, you can give us a call. The best thing is you can always give us a call on one three, 1832. And we'd be happy to give you some guidance.
00:05:08
S1: All right, we'll repeat those details before we wrap up regarding the Braille then. So, um, that is, uh, for, uh, by choice and I guess that it gets posted to you at your address, you give that information and that's how that all kind of plays out.
00:05:22
S2: That's correct. Yeah. We, we will not be able to have Braille ballot material printed for every voting center in the state. Logistically, that's just not doable within the time frame, I'm afraid. But if you do want to use a Braille ballot pack, then that will come to you in the mail. And again, give us a call. Registration closes 5 p.m. on Monday, the 2nd of November.
00:05:42
S1: Is that just for people in Victoria? Of course. I mean, I'm actually in South Australia and I'm a bit obsessed about voting. I don't suppose I can ask for one of those packs.
00:05:51
S2: Well, if you're in registered to vote or enrolled to vote in Victoria, then you can. Absolutely.
00:05:57
S1: Okay, terrific. Now, what about for other people who might not choose Braille or who might choose not postal voting, not turn up to a polling booth, not vote early? What is available for people who might be blind or have low vision, or indeed for people with disabilities? As far as the 2026 election goes?
00:06:15
S2: Yeah. Well, a couple of things. What we what we offer at our voting centres is things like magnifying sheets. Now, some of your listeners, of course, would be familiar with those. Um, people with, uh, with low vision, uh, depending on, on your particular situation may find those useful. We also make sure that all of our staff at voting centres are appropriately trained. And part of that training includes being able to help people who might have different needs or particular needs to themselves that might differ from from others. And what we do in that space, we make sure that that the staff can assist you. For example, if you need prioritisation in the queue, if you might need some seating while you're waiting, if you even need a hand to complete your ballot as well, that's perfectly fine. And of course, we welcome caregivers and support people to come along with you.
00:07:02
S1: As the person with a disability. There's nothing better in the sense that when you go to the counter or whatever, and you sort of say, look, can I have some some assistance? And the person that says, oh, yeah, I know exactly what you're talking about. I mean, that's very comforting. Rather than having to explain the situation, then I'd better go and ask someone. And yeah, this kind of rigmarole. So if you've got your staff trained, that's a very positive thing. And I'm sure people would be very appreciative of that.
00:07:24
S2: We do as much of that as we possibly can. Now. Now, clearly, if, if if your query requires some some more in-depth knowledge or something like that, then that might need to be escalated to a more senior staff member. I mean, we have 25,000 staff for the election that run the election across the state. Now we provide them a really good training program, but clearly for some things, we'll need that to be escalated to a more senior person. But again, to me, all of this goes down to we all have a vote and our democracy is at its strongest when every person can exercise that, regardless of the situation that they are personally in. So one of the things about having compulsory voting in Victoria is that if that's the case, if the state says to its people, it's your civic duty to vote, which the state does, then it's my obligation as head of the VEC to make sure that that's as easy as possible for people to do so. We take that very seriously.
00:08:18
S1: Terrific. Anything else for people who might be blind or have low vision in terms of voting?
00:08:22
S2: Oh, look, they're probably the the main thing. So please don't feel shy about asking for, uh, for information or some assistance. Again, 1318322 to get in touch with us if you've got any queries about this. Uh, If you are able to go onto vc.vic.gov.au, if that's a channel that works for you, of course, we'd, uh, we'd encourage that as well. And one other thing, this is not not for people who are blind or have low vision, but this is something that perhaps some of your listeners might be interested in on the Tuesday, the 17th of November, that's the day before the general early voting opens. We're going to have in in each of the 88 lower House districts, we're going to have one mobile low sensory voting centre as well. So for people who are neurodiverse, we've trialled this at some by elections and it's been really, really, um, positively received where, um, you know, people who are neurodiverse and find the environment perhaps a little bit, um, unpleasant or confronting. We've got some spaces where there's calmer lighting, lower lighting, a bit more natural light where possible, lower noise, a bit more space around the voting table and so forth. And that's particularly targeted for people who are neurodiverse and their carers. And there's going to be one of those in each lower house district on the Tuesday the 17th of November. Open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.. Again, you can find the details of that on the website. Details about particular voting centers will go live on our website on the 4th of November. That's the day after the issue of the writ, where you can find your local voting center as well.
00:09:53
S1: That's very, very good because, you know, voting centers and even on the day can be very, very busy, very, very bustling. And for some people that they do find that overwhelming and a bit challenging. And even if they say if you've got, you know, adult children, maybe in that sort of situation, it can be, uh, you know, can be an unpleasant experience, which, uh, which shouldn't, shouldn't need to be. So it's a great initiative to do that. And what about in terms of telephone voting on federal elections, people are blind or low vision of being able to do that. Some state elections also. What about in Victoria? Is that something that's on the cards? I know it's probably a legislative thing, so you might be a bit limited as to what you can say.
00:10:28
S2: No, no, we we we do offer telephone assisted voting. Uh, it is open to specific cohorts only. it's basically to courts or to individuals in Victoria who are blind, who have low vision or who have a physical disability that would otherwise prevent them from being able to vote. The way it works, I mean, one of the crucial things, of course, about our electoral system is that your vote is secret. The way we do that is if you if you do want to vote by telephone and you meet the criteria that I've just mentioned, you can give us a call to register for that. And then when that happens is you will get a call from, um, you'll be speaking to one of our operators. What they will do is they will, they will find you on the roll. They'll establish your eligibility to use the telephone assisted voting service, and then they will give you a unique code. And then what you do is you call a different number also to our, um, to our staff, but to a completely different area. You will give them the code and then that person will take your vote. So that second person that takes your vote will not know your name, but they will know that you have been registered and that you have a right to vote by telephone. And then they will complete the ballot material for you. Of course, we've got people who, um, uh, we've always got two people on the call, one person who does the call and another person who verifies that you're following the instructions. Um, as in that our person is following your instructions as the voter, and that way you can vote by telephone. So, um, that's something we offer as well.
00:11:53
S1: Okay. And that's actually something that has happened quite a bit at federal elections. So anyone that might have moved into Victoria since the last time that, that is a system they'd be pretty familiar with. When does that open? When do you start taking calls for people to register for that?
00:12:07
S2: Uh, you can register for that. Um, at the same, uh, same time. I think it is during the election period itself. So, um, if you do want to use that, there's a separate number for you to call to, to, to make it a bit quicker. And that is one three, five, 723. So you can just do that during the, um, during the voting period.
00:12:27
S1: Terrific. All right. And that, uh, that number, uh, you call and then you get called back if you like, with your pin, and then that pin you call back to, uh, another number to, to actually vote. You, you don't say on Peter, I'm John or I'm Mary. You sort of say this is my number. Uh, I'm ready to vote.
00:12:45
S2: That's right. So again, our operators will be able to help you with that. But we, we make sure that your votes stay secret because that's, that's all of our right to have a secret ballot, of course. So the person who marks you often knows what your name is will not know how you vote. That's right.
00:12:57
S1: Ben, excellent information. Now, we, uh, will put that up on our show notes, but there's quite a bit there. So maybe if we just go through this one thing at a time. So yeah, your website, your general website is pretty straightforward.
00:13:08
S2: Yeah. Look, with, with our, with our website, we obviously make sure that, um, that it is appropriately, um, accessible and works well with screen readers and so on. The other thing for that is we, we obviously follow web content accessibility guidelines and, and so on. We also have, as I said, the telephone number on 131832 that people can call. And again, we've got trained staff that can help you in that regard. One important thing is that, um, with especially say with the website, is that we are aware that elections are always a time when there can be some mis and disinformation doing the rounds. Now in our case, you mentioned you're from South Australia. Now South Australia has truth in political advertising laws. We do not have those in Victoria. So my role and the role of my staff is limited to mis and disinformation around the electoral process. We don't we don't get into truth in advertising when it goes to policies, candidates, parties and so on. But if you become aware of something that you know you're not sure about, like if you've heard, if you hear something about, you know, how I can actually vote, um, how votes are counted, uh, what hours voting centres are open, all of those sorts of things. If it doesn't sound quite right, we just encourage people to, to come to us and then we can either correct it if it's incorrect or tell you. Yeah, that's true. And here's how we can help you.
00:14:29
S1: Terrific. And so the two phone numbers that the general phone number, if you want to give us that again, please.
00:14:34
S2: The general number is 131832. That's always the best one to call us on. So even if you've got a specific query, if you go to that one, you'll reach one of our trained operators and they'll be able to help you regardless of what your query is.
00:14:48
S1: Give us the number again for people who might want to vote by telephone that number to register for that.
00:14:52
S2: If you want to register for telephone assisted voting, give us a call on 135723.
00:14:58
S1: Then you're going to be busy. We appreciate you making some time for us. We wish you well under, uh, well, you know, we'll see how it all turns out.
00:15:05
S2: Thank you very much, Peter. It's great. We're certainly looking forward to it. It is a bit like Christmas. Um, it's a lot of hard work from a lot of people, but, uh, you know, it's, it's democracy. And to be a part of that is a wonderful thing. Thanks.
00:15:15
S1: All right. Like that might be the case. That's, uh, Sven Blumel, he's the commissioner from the Victorian Electoral Commission. So if you want more details, vec.vic.gov.au. uvec.vic.gov.au. You.
S1: The Victorian election is coming up at the end of November. Let's find out a bit more about it. Let's find a lot more about it and speak to the Commissioner, which is really great, of Sven Blum to give up his time. Sven, great to meet you. Thanks so much for your time and hope I can call you. Even though you are the Commissioner.
00:00:56
S2: You certainly can. Peter, it's an absolute pleasure to be here.
00:00:58
S1: Now, of course, the date is all set and I guess all systems are in in preparation.
00:01:04
S2: Yeah, absolutely. It's got to be the biggest one ever. We've got over 4.7 million people on the roll. And Election day is Saturday, the 28th of November.
00:01:13
S1: Let's go through a few dates. I guess in terms of enrollment, of course, the people have maybe turned 18 in the last little while, or perhaps they've moved addresses, etc.. What's the kind of cut off time for that?
00:01:23
S2: Yeah, the cut off time is 8 p.m. on Tuesday, the 3rd of November. Now that just so happens to be Melbourne Cup Day. So that's an easy way to remember it and make sure that you're enrolled and your enrolment is up to date by Melbourne Cup day.
00:01:37
S1: Okay. And I guess enrollments in the usual kind of ways.
00:01:40
S2: Yeah, that's exactly right. Same as before. So if you are turning 18 and even if you haven't turned 18 yet, but you will turn 18 by Election Day, you can enroll now and then you'll become eligible to vote as soon as you turn 18.
00:01:52
S1: Now, I guess for the candidates, there's a sort of cut off periods as to when they have to say, yes, I'm putting my hand up. Is that a time come and gone yet?
00:02:01
S2: Oh no. That is coming up in November as well. All of the dates specifically are available on our website, but candidate nominations themselves open on Tuesday the 4th of November, and they close on Monday the 9th of November. So that's that's quite a tight time frame. Um, that was changed by legislative change earlier this year. But obviously, uh, say for parties and individuals, clearly they can already do that before that date. But Tuesday, the 4th of November is the first day that you can actually then formally register as a candidate.
00:02:33
S1: And I guess that then gives you as an organization, if you like, a time to put information up on the website and that sort of thing, that's great.
00:02:40
S2: And importantly for us, it's also the time that once we've closed nominations, that's when we do what we call the ballot draw. That's where we randomly determine the order that candidates appear on all the various ballot papers. And of course, until we've done that, we can't start printing the ballot material itself. And of course, we have to be ready to have that in all corners of the state by the time early voting opens on the 18th of November.
00:03:07
S1: Well, you preempted my next question because that seems to have become very, very popular over the years. And I guess as popular today as ever, that the early voting that that seems to be an option that people love to take up.
00:03:17
S2: Yeah. That's correct. So last state election in 2022, we had a bit of a 50% of Victorians voting early. This time we think that might go as high as 60%. So we're actually getting ready for that. We've actually increased our early voting footprint quite substantially. So last time we had about 150 early voting centers across the state. This time we're going to have over 200.
00:03:40
S1: Sounds like you're very much in readiness. This is something. You're right. This is your Christmas. I guess in a way.
00:03:45
S2: Well, it's a it's a rather stressful Christmas. But then I guess Christmas can be stressful as well. Um, and now look, this, this is what we do every time we deliver an election. We, we learn lessons. We, we put in place the lessons we learned from last time. And we just, we just want the best possible election. We can, we can do it. It takes years. I mean, we're already doing some of the planning for the 2030 state election. So it's a it's a it's a big job. But we're ready.
00:04:09
S1: So people can pre-poll from the 18th of November. I guess they can also register to vote by post if they choose to do that.
00:04:17
S2: Yeah. That's correct. And specifically. So, so, uh, in addition to the, the standard, um, postal vote, you can also apply for a Braille postal vote. Okay. That's open till the 2nd of November as well. So that's, that's another option that's available.
00:04:33
S1: Alright. What's involved with that then Sven, what do people need to do for that? Because that's, that's sort of getting close.
00:04:38
S2: Yeah. it is getting close a couple of weeks away. So for that, the best thing to do if you can is go on to our website and, you know, you can obviously use a screen reader on that when, when we, um, when we prepare our, uh, our website, whenever we do any updates, we make sure that it's, um, it's sensitive to, to screen readers and accessibility tools like that and have a search for, for Braille or you can, you can give us a call. The best thing is you can always give us a call on one three, 1832. And we'd be happy to give you some guidance.
00:05:08
S1: All right, we'll repeat those details before we wrap up regarding the Braille then. So, um, that is, uh, for, uh, by choice and I guess that it gets posted to you at your address, you give that information and that's how that all kind of plays out.
00:05:22
S2: That's correct. Yeah. We, we will not be able to have Braille ballot material printed for every voting center in the state. Logistically, that's just not doable within the time frame, I'm afraid. But if you do want to use a Braille ballot pack, then that will come to you in the mail. And again, give us a call. Registration closes 5 p.m. on Monday, the 2nd of November.
00:05:42
S1: Is that just for people in Victoria? Of course. I mean, I'm actually in South Australia and I'm a bit obsessed about voting. I don't suppose I can ask for one of those packs.
00:05:51
S2: Well, if you're in registered to vote or enrolled to vote in Victoria, then you can. Absolutely.
00:05:57
S1: Okay, terrific. Now, what about for other people who might not choose Braille or who might choose not postal voting, not turn up to a polling booth, not vote early? What is available for people who might be blind or have low vision, or indeed for people with disabilities? As far as the 2026 election goes?
00:06:15
S2: Yeah. Well, a couple of things. What we what we offer at our voting centres is things like magnifying sheets. Now, some of your listeners, of course, would be familiar with those. Um, people with, uh, with low vision, uh, depending on, on your particular situation may find those useful. We also make sure that all of our staff at voting centres are appropriately trained. And part of that training includes being able to help people who might have different needs or particular needs to themselves that might differ from from others. And what we do in that space, we make sure that that the staff can assist you. For example, if you need prioritisation in the queue, if you might need some seating while you're waiting, if you even need a hand to complete your ballot as well, that's perfectly fine. And of course, we welcome caregivers and support people to come along with you.
00:07:02
S1: As the person with a disability. There's nothing better in the sense that when you go to the counter or whatever, and you sort of say, look, can I have some some assistance? And the person that says, oh, yeah, I know exactly what you're talking about. I mean, that's very comforting. Rather than having to explain the situation, then I'd better go and ask someone. And yeah, this kind of rigmarole. So if you've got your staff trained, that's a very positive thing. And I'm sure people would be very appreciative of that.
00:07:24
S2: We do as much of that as we possibly can. Now. Now, clearly, if, if if your query requires some some more in-depth knowledge or something like that, then that might need to be escalated to a more senior staff member. I mean, we have 25,000 staff for the election that run the election across the state. Now we provide them a really good training program, but clearly for some things, we'll need that to be escalated to a more senior person. But again, to me, all of this goes down to we all have a vote and our democracy is at its strongest when every person can exercise that, regardless of the situation that they are personally in. So one of the things about having compulsory voting in Victoria is that if that's the case, if the state says to its people, it's your civic duty to vote, which the state does, then it's my obligation as head of the VEC to make sure that that's as easy as possible for people to do so. We take that very seriously.
00:08:18
S1: Terrific. Anything else for people who might be blind or have low vision in terms of voting?
00:08:22
S2: Oh, look, they're probably the the main thing. So please don't feel shy about asking for, uh, for information or some assistance. Again, 1318322 to get in touch with us if you've got any queries about this. Uh, If you are able to go onto vc.vic.gov.au, if that's a channel that works for you, of course, we'd, uh, we'd encourage that as well. And one other thing, this is not not for people who are blind or have low vision, but this is something that perhaps some of your listeners might be interested in on the Tuesday, the 17th of November, that's the day before the general early voting opens. We're going to have in in each of the 88 lower House districts, we're going to have one mobile low sensory voting centre as well. So for people who are neurodiverse, we've trialled this at some by elections and it's been really, really, um, positively received where, um, you know, people who are neurodiverse and find the environment perhaps a little bit, um, unpleasant or confronting. We've got some spaces where there's calmer lighting, lower lighting, a bit more natural light where possible, lower noise, a bit more space around the voting table and so forth. And that's particularly targeted for people who are neurodiverse and their carers. And there's going to be one of those in each lower house district on the Tuesday the 17th of November. Open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.. Again, you can find the details of that on the website. Details about particular voting centers will go live on our website on the 4th of November. That's the day after the issue of the writ, where you can find your local voting center as well.
00:09:53
S1: That's very, very good because, you know, voting centers and even on the day can be very, very busy, very, very bustling. And for some people that they do find that overwhelming and a bit challenging. And even if they say if you've got, you know, adult children, maybe in that sort of situation, it can be, uh, you know, can be an unpleasant experience, which, uh, which shouldn't, shouldn't need to be. So it's a great initiative to do that. And what about in terms of telephone voting on federal elections, people are blind or low vision of being able to do that. Some state elections also. What about in Victoria? Is that something that's on the cards? I know it's probably a legislative thing, so you might be a bit limited as to what you can say.
00:10:28
S2: No, no, we we we do offer telephone assisted voting. Uh, it is open to specific cohorts only. it's basically to courts or to individuals in Victoria who are blind, who have low vision or who have a physical disability that would otherwise prevent them from being able to vote. The way it works, I mean, one of the crucial things, of course, about our electoral system is that your vote is secret. The way we do that is if you if you do want to vote by telephone and you meet the criteria that I've just mentioned, you can give us a call to register for that. And then when that happens is you will get a call from, um, you'll be speaking to one of our operators. What they will do is they will, they will find you on the roll. They'll establish your eligibility to use the telephone assisted voting service, and then they will give you a unique code. And then what you do is you call a different number also to our, um, to our staff, but to a completely different area. You will give them the code and then that person will take your vote. So that second person that takes your vote will not know your name, but they will know that you have been registered and that you have a right to vote by telephone. And then they will complete the ballot material for you. Of course, we've got people who, um, uh, we've always got two people on the call, one person who does the call and another person who verifies that you're following the instructions. Um, as in that our person is following your instructions as the voter, and that way you can vote by telephone. So, um, that's something we offer as well.
00:11:53
S1: Okay. And that's actually something that has happened quite a bit at federal elections. So anyone that might have moved into Victoria since the last time that, that is a system they'd be pretty familiar with. When does that open? When do you start taking calls for people to register for that?
00:12:07
S2: Uh, you can register for that. Um, at the same, uh, same time. I think it is during the election period itself. So, um, if you do want to use that, there's a separate number for you to call to, to, to make it a bit quicker. And that is one three, five, 723. So you can just do that during the, um, during the voting period.
00:12:27
S1: Terrific. All right. And that, uh, that number, uh, you call and then you get called back if you like, with your pin, and then that pin you call back to, uh, another number to, to actually vote. You, you don't say on Peter, I'm John or I'm Mary. You sort of say this is my number. Uh, I'm ready to vote.
00:12:45
S2: That's right. So again, our operators will be able to help you with that. But we, we make sure that your votes stay secret because that's, that's all of our right to have a secret ballot, of course. So the person who marks you often knows what your name is will not know how you vote. That's right.
00:12:57
S1: Ben, excellent information. Now, we, uh, will put that up on our show notes, but there's quite a bit there. So maybe if we just go through this one thing at a time. So yeah, your website, your general website is pretty straightforward.
00:13:08
S2: Yeah. Look, with, with our, with our website, we obviously make sure that, um, that it is appropriately, um, accessible and works well with screen readers and so on. The other thing for that is we, we obviously follow web content accessibility guidelines and, and so on. We also have, as I said, the telephone number on 131832 that people can call. And again, we've got trained staff that can help you in that regard. One important thing is that, um, with especially say with the website, is that we are aware that elections are always a time when there can be some mis and disinformation doing the rounds. Now in our case, you mentioned you're from South Australia. Now South Australia has truth in political advertising laws. We do not have those in Victoria. So my role and the role of my staff is limited to mis and disinformation around the electoral process. We don't we don't get into truth in advertising when it goes to policies, candidates, parties and so on. But if you become aware of something that you know you're not sure about, like if you've heard, if you hear something about, you know, how I can actually vote, um, how votes are counted, uh, what hours voting centres are open, all of those sorts of things. If it doesn't sound quite right, we just encourage people to, to come to us and then we can either correct it if it's incorrect or tell you. Yeah, that's true. And here's how we can help you.
00:14:29
S1: Terrific. And so the two phone numbers that the general phone number, if you want to give us that again, please.
00:14:34
S2: The general number is 131832. That's always the best one to call us on. So even if you've got a specific query, if you go to that one, you'll reach one of our trained operators and they'll be able to help you regardless of what your query is.
00:14:48
S1: Give us the number again for people who might want to vote by telephone that number to register for that.
00:14:52
S2: If you want to register for telephone assisted voting, give us a call on 135723.
00:14:58
S1: Then you're going to be busy. We appreciate you making some time for us. We wish you well under, uh, well, you know, we'll see how it all turns out.
00:15:05
S2: Thank you very much, Peter. It's great. We're certainly looking forward to it. It is a bit like Christmas. Um, it's a lot of hard work from a lot of people, but, uh, you know, it's, it's democracy. And to be a part of that is a wonderful thing. Thanks.
00:15:15
S1: All right. Like that might be the case. That's, uh, Sven Blumel, he's the commissioner from the Victorian Electoral Commission. So if you want more details, vec.vic.gov.au. uvec.vic.gov.au. You.
