Eden-Monaro covers 41,617km2, an area roughly the same as the Netherlands, and contains 87 polling places that will be staffed by 649 paid temporary electoral workers on election day.

In total, 80,000 temporary workers will be needed across Australia during the next election and the AEC has identified Bombala as one of the key areas to bolster ahead of the election period. While the date for the next election is not yet known, the AEC is asking people to register their interest now.

Holding elections in Australia is a particular challenge due to the sheer size of the country and the sparsity of the population in rural areas. To put this in context, Australia is more than twice the size of India but has less than two per cent of its population. Australia is almost unique in this regard, with only two countries having a lower population density.

Tom Rogers, AEC Commissioner, said, “The federal election is Australia’s largest peacetime event. With more than 8,000 polling places spread throughout Australia, the AEC has to employ around 80,000 temporary staff from across the country to staff each polling place. While cities and suburbs have the benefit of a large population in their immediate vicinity, many rural and regional polling places have a very small local population base from which to recruit. 

“There will be an election at some point within the next 12 months and we’re calling on people to register their interest for election work now so they can help their local community in the Eden-Monaro electorate as part of this unique event. There are 649 positions in Eden-Monaro across 87 polling places that we need to fill to ensure the election runs smoothly. Election work is a thoroughly rewarding experience and a great opportunity to contribute to the local area.”

All temporary election roles are paid and full training is provided. Those wishing to register their interest in working at the next election, or wanting to find out more information, should head to www.aec.gov.au