Make voting easier: VEC proposes new accessibility measures
Thursday 5 March 2026
For immediate release
The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) has proposed a range of reforms aimed at making voting more accessible, as part of its submission to the Victorian Parliament’s Electoral Matters Committee inquiry into voting centre accessibility.
The submission combines existing recommendations and new measures designed to reduce barriers and increase participation. A number of these recommendations require legislative change and could be put in place for the 2030 state election.
The submission also outlines improvements already underway to strengthen accessibility, such as additional low sensory voting options, detailed guides on how to access certain voting centres and better signage to help people find their way at voting centres.
Electoral Commissioner Sven Bluemmel said making voting more accessible was essential to ensure every Victorian can actively participate in their democracy.
'Accessible voting is key to a fair and inclusive democracy,' he said. 'While some improvements will take time to implement, we are continuing work with Parliament, candidates and political parties to reduce barriers and make voting easier and more accessible for all Victorians.'
Key legislative reforms the VEC proposes include:
- allowing publicly funded venues to be used as early voting centres
- increasing the non-campaigner zones at low sensory voting centres to better support neurodivergent voters and their carers
- making sure mobile voting is available before early voting to support priority communities.
The submission also proposes additional ways to make voting more accessible and less confusing for voters. This includes aligning eligibility for general postal voter status with federal criteria for people with disability and their carers, and giving more voters access to electronically assisted voting delivered through the VEC’s telephone voting service.
The expanded eligibility would cover voters who are interstate or overseas, unwell, caring for someone, experiencing homelessness or family violence, or who are neurodivergent. The telephone assisted voting service simply requires eligible voters to have access to a telephone connection, and the process is designed to still ensure the secrecy of each voter's vote.
'Our focus is on removing practical barriers so that every eligible voter can participate safely, independently and with confidence,' Mr Bluemmel said.
The VEC's submission to the Electoral Matters Committee is available at vec.vic.gov.au/about-us/publications/submissions