Media statement from the Electoral Commission of SA (ECSA)
Adelaide Plains - Result of petition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 04/12/2024
Adelaide, South Australia
The Court of Disputed Returns has made orders finalising a petition filed by the Electoral Commissioner seeking to correct the outcome of the 2022 election in the Adelaide Plains Council area. The Court made the orders with the consent of the affected parties.
The Commissioner filed two petitions after identifying an error in the settings of the computer software used to count votes in complex elections, which he considered affected the outcome of the election in the Adelaide Plains Council area and a recount conducted following the resignation of a former Adelaide Plains Councillor.
The petitions seek to correct the results of the election and the recount to ensure they reflect the will of the voters.
Since the Commissioner lodged the petitions more than 28 days after the conclusion of the election, he had to apply to extend time to allow the petitions to be heard. On 27 August 2024, the Court granted the Commissioner extensions of time to hear both petitions. In its judgment, the Court stressed that the error in the counting and declaration of votes was solely the responsibility of the Commissioner, and there was no reason to think the former councillors brought about their removal from office or did not fulfil their functions as councillors with enthusiasm and diligence.
As a result of the petition, the Court has now declared Ms. Terry-Anne Keen and Mr. Eddie Stubing not duly elected, and Mr. Melville Lawrence and Mr. Brian Parker duly elected.
The Commissioner welcomes the finalisation of this petition and apologises for the impact of the error on each of the respondents and the Adelaide Plains Council.
The second petition filed by the Commissioner about the outcome of the recount conducted following the resignation of a former Adelaide Plains Councillor is still before the Court.
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