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Australian Electoral Commission
The AEC is undertaking a number of internal reviews and audits as well as external surveys on the conduct of the 1999 referendum. The results of the reviews will be important input into the planning and operation of future elections and referendums.
The AEC will also participate in any parliamentary inquiries that are established by the Federal Government into the conduct of the referendum.
The AEC undertook a number of internal reviews to evaluate its performance on various operational processes and arrangements of the 1999 referendum. These reviews were conducted on a State and Territory basis and also on a national basis.
The findings of these reviews will be used in the planning of policies, procedures and services for the conduct of future referendums and federal elections.
This survey is being undertaken to determine the effects of changes to the materials and training in the issue of declaration votes.
The APVIS was used for the first time at the 1999 referendum and a full review of its effectiveness during the referendum is being undertaken.
Internal reviews on all aspects of the AEC's public information campaign are being undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of the campaign and to enhance the planning of the information campaign for the next major electoral event.
The AEC conducted tracking research to measure the success of the AEC's referendum advertising campaign in reaching and impacting on the voting public. A total of five national telephone surveys were undertaken before, during and after the advertising campaign.
The research showed that all phases of the AEC advertising campaign succeeded in reaching the majority of Australian voters. Among other findings, the research indicated that among those surveyed:
The research found that the awareness of the advertising messages peaked at planned times and that on a prompted basis the campaign achieved a reach of 81 per cent of eligible voters.
Over 100 interviews were held with indigenous people around Australia to examine the effectiveness of the AEC's advertising campaign for indigenous electors. The research found that the majority of electors recalled television advertising with particularly high recall of the television formality advertisements.
One of the strongest findings was that the electors were positive about advertising translated into indigenous languages.
The post-referendum elector survey was conducted in the 24 hours following the close of polls. A sample of 1 200 eligible electors were phoned and asked questions about their satisfaction with the referendum process and AEC services.
The survey results found that:
A review of the Training of Polling Staff (TOPS) program is being undertaken to further enhance the production and delivery of the TOPS program at future elections and referendums.
A questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 6 000 polling officials and over 300 AEC divisional staff who conducted the training.
The AEC's Internal Audit section provides an independent assessment of operational performance on AEC programs and procedures. For the 1999 referendum, a series of audit reviews are being undertaken in several operational areas.
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.