WHITTLESEA council will gain almost $700,000 from the fines of people who failed to vote in last year’s council elections.
Of more than 16,000 people who didn’t vote, the Victorian Electoral Commission is fining 9539 voters $70 each for not supplying an accepted excuse.
VEC spokesman Thomas Harper said fine revenue would be given to the council and not the VEC.
“People who wish to contest a fine are within their rights to contest the case in court. However, cases that are taken to court are handled by the relevant council, not the VEC,” he said.
Whittlesea council spokeswoman Caitlin McKay said 9539 infringement notices were sent out after the October 2012 council elections compared with 9032 after the 2008 elections.
“The increase is simply attributed to the increase in the number of voters in the municipality over the four years,” she said.
