If you thought the microscope was over the electorate for the Orange byelection, it was nothing compared to the pressure felt as nearly 50,000 ballots were counted.
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The votes were counted seven times, before a re-count was granted after a request from the National Party.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party’s (SFF) Phil Donato was declared the winner with a margin of just 50 votes after a recount on Monday.
During the recount, the Nationals challenged an estimated 300 votes, including first preference votes for Mr Donato and preferences from Country Labor’s Bernard Fitzsimon.
Only five of those challenges were successful due to an incomplete preference distribution and were considered informal votes.
“(Challenges) are a normal part of any vote, it gets a little more heated in a re-count,” NSW National Party state director Nathan Quigley said.
“It doesn’t always take a week, it’s only because this vote has been very close that it’s taken a while longer to reach a result fair to everyone. Kudos to the Electoral Commission, they were very methodical in the way they went about it.”
Despite the wait, Mr Quigley said the paper ballot was still preferred.
“A lot of us are pretty happy for the security of a paper vote. Examples of serious mishaps in NSW and Australia are very rare,” he said.
“It takes a long time, and it’s a bit more laborious, but it’s less open to manipulation.”
SFF upper-house member Robert Borsak, and deputy chairman of the NSW Parliament’s joint standing committee on electoral matters, said paper ballots provided confidence in the system.
“Without that confidence, you can’t trust the result,” Mr Borsak said.
“Because it was such a close call and such an important vote, not just to the Nats, but to the voters, the time and effort was warranted.
“I don’t think for one moment the process wasn’t done fairly.”
Mr Borsak said the committee had rejected a further roll-out of the NSW iVote system which allows electronic voting for people with disabilities or who are unable to reach a polling place.
“We’re not enamored with the failures that occurred with the iVote system in the last two state elections,” he said. Those failures include names being marked off the role, but no vote recorded.
Declan Rurenga
Declan Rurenga was the editor of Griffith's Area News and Leeton's Irrigator until September 2023. Before landing at the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area, he reported news in Junee, Wagga Wagga, Orange and Cootamundra.
Declan Rurenga was the editor of Griffith's Area News and Leeton's Irrigator until September 2023. Before landing at the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area, he reported news in Junee, Wagga Wagga, Orange and Cootamundra.
