E-voting comes to Australia

in brief Visually impaired Australians will be able to cast their ballots using e-voting machines for the first time in this year's federal election.

The e-voting machines will be available for two weeks before the election and on the election day itself at 29 locations across the country, including Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney.

Groups representing the visually-impaired will be invited to a demonstration of the machines before they are put into use, Special Minister of State Gary Nairn said.

The machines will be in deployed in Melbourne, Kooyong, Ballarat, Shepparton, Warragul, Geelong, Adelaide, Gilles Plains, Noarlunga, Wollongong, Parramatta, Enfield, Chatswood, Coffs Harbour, Dubbo, Albury, Darwin, Alice Springs, Brisbane City, Brisbane North, Gold Coast, Hervey Bay, Cairns, Hobart, Launceston, Perth, Mandurah, Bunbury and Canberra.

Blind or visually impaired voters who live too far from the machines will still be able to vote by post or cast an assisted vote, the minister said.