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The AEC can't be trusted - 140,000 kicked off the roll overnight

The AEC has revealed that overnight, it has removed 140,000 people from the electoral roll - right before the election was called. The coincidence is a little too big to be believed. Normally removals would occur progressively over many months. People would have time to be informed that they need to get back on. Now, there is basically not enough time.

The AEC is doing Howard's dirty work. Be in no doubt. Denial stops here.

Such a blatantly dodgy act will antagonise any incoming Labor Government. Why would impartial AEC officials risk their careers like that? I believe the AEC leadership are either convinced the Coalition will win, or want the Coalition to win. Given the Government's polling, the former implies the latter.

Another one of those strange coincidences is that the AEC unit writing the software to manage electoral rolls is right next door to the Canberra office of Liberal pollster Crosby Textor. It is called "Project Genesis".

How to check you enrolment

The purge includes people who have moved to another address in the
same electorate - don't assume you and your friends are enrolled - be sure to check details here:

https://oevf.aec.gov.au/

If you have been taken off the roll, you will need to print out a form, fill it in, and get it back to the AEC, fax may be the best way. Their fax line may be very busy on Wednesday evening so do it ASAP!

Enrolments for new enrolees close at 8pm tomorrow, Wednesday 17 October, the roll closes for people changing addresses at 8pm, Tuesday 23 October 2007.

Spooky prediction coming true

Already, one of my predictions from last year may be happening:

  • Can we rule out a Florida-style roll cleansing? Roll-cleansing requires detailed data on likely voting intention. Such information would not be readily available as it was in Florida (People registered as dems or republicans, race etc). However, I can imagine Crosby Textor could conduct "anonymous" phone surveys in marginal electrorates, and feed that data across to Project Genesis.

Indicators: Mysterious dropping of voters from electoral rolls, either gradually in run up to election, or suddenly just prior to election. Blamed on computer glitches or voters themselves. Intensive Liberal phone polling in marginal electorates, conducted without reference to statistical sampling methods.

We don't know who will get the blame for the sudden purging of 140,000 voters. Maybe it was a "backlog".

When the ALP examines who has been purged and does some demographic analysis, we may find out if it is more than random.

Tele article understates the problem

The News Ltd article underplays the crisis by failing to note that these people have not been removed "in the last six months". An ALP source tells me that in fact the regular electoral monthly roll updates each party receives have not shown this happening! It has been sprung at the last moment. He described this as "despicable".

There is no prospect of re-enrolling all these people in time, whereas progressive removal over a few months would have given plenty of time.

This is an act of bastardry, and anyone out there who thinks the AEC is acting in good faith needs to wake up.

The Presumption of Good Faith is itself an article of faith amongst those who decry "conspiracy theories". The Press in particular is a chronic victim of this Presumption. Good Intentions are presumed despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Voters barred...

As alarmed friends ask about the veracity of this news, here is at least one source for the 140,000 voters erased from electoral lists, not so much overnight but in a very quick period of time and possibly more removal from AEC lists, to come between now and now...

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140,000 will lose their vote
Article from: The Daily Telegraph

By Steve Lewis

October 15, 2007 12:00am

MORE than 140,000 mainly young Australians have been stripped of their right to vote in the last six months.

And the Australian Electoral Commission has revealed it has no idea how many will be re-enrolled before Wednesday's deadline.

The alarming admission follows concerns that up to 400,000 young voters - aged 18 to 25 - may be denied a vote.

New voters have less than 60 hours to enrol or they will miss out on having a say in the November 24 election.

This follows the introduction of more stringent electoral laws making it harder for first-time voters to enrol and remain up-to-date.

Electoral Commissioner Ian Campbell admitted that 143,000 voters have been "removed by objection" from the roll during the past six months.