Page 43 - Conducting Elections during COVID-19

AUSTRALIA - QUEENSLAND 25

What personal hygiene measures will be in place?

• Queensland Health’s personal hygiene guidelines are to be followed by all people at polling
booths including voters and polling officials. Copies of these guidelines will be distributed to and
available at early voting centres and polling booths.

• Where available, hand sanitizer will be provided for voters and polling officials at early voting
centres and polling booths.

• Additional cleaning of polling booth areas will be undertaken to ensure that hard surfaces are
regularly disinfected.

• All people in polling booths should follow social distancing guidelines including maintaining
distances of 1.5 metres where possible and avoiding handshakes.

• The ECQ has written to candidates advising that no how-to-vote cards or other election material
can be distributed at a polling booth.

• Voters are encouraged to bring their own pen or pencil with them to vote, although pencils will
still be available to all voters.

How will the numbers and proximity of people be managed
during voting?

• Early voting will be open from Monday 16 March until Friday 27 March. Voters are encouraged to
vote during the early voting period at a time convenient to them, where possible outside of peak
periods. Voters should note that numbers are usually higher at lunch time or the end of the day.

• Early voting centres are generally open from 9AM to 5PM during the first week of early voting,
and from 9AM to 6PM during the second week. ECQ has extended voting hours at most early
voting centres between 9AM and 9PM on Wednesday and Thursday this week and next week,
and on Saturday 21 March between 9AM and 5PM.
• Polling officials will be monitoring the number of people in attendance at polling booths to make
sure there are fewer than 100 people present at any one time. This has been revised down from
500 following the decision of the National Cabinet.