Election 2022: Beverley and Wendy Purss slam inaccessible polling booth

A polling booth in the federal seat of Page is under the microscope as voters label a pre-poll venue “not good enough” for disabled and elderly people. Here’s what they said.

Is this the least accessible polling booth in NSW?

Voters at Southern Cross University in flood affected Lismore seemed to think so as elderly and disabled locals struggled to navigate 200 metres of steep inclines and two flights of steps before they could vote.

Some residents needed volunteers to help them up the steps holding their zimmer frames before requesting a ballot be brought to them outside under the rain.

It’s yet another polling booth that has caught the ire of elderly and disabled residents in the state after a Port Macquarie venue was similarly inaccessible and caused traffic chaos.

Beverley Purss is an elderly resident near Lismore who needs a walking stick to get around but her daughter Wendy was horrified to see the inaccessibility of the polling booth.

“My mum can barely walk,” Wendy said.

“There’s the steep hill and then steps, you don’t know which block to go to, even the security guard didn’t know, there was no signage.

“We need more ramps and accessibility for the elderly.”

The access to the large university campus is difficult to navigate with the booth located at the ‘H Block’ which is situated in the middle of a hill.

Parking spaces are over 100 metres away because the nearest car lot is reserved for university staff.

Voters entering the polling area from University Drive had to navigate a walk up and down a steep 30-metre incline.

People entering past the health building also had a long walk up an incline before being met by two flights of stairs.

The issue was made worse by the fact there was no public carpark nearby for people to hop out and enter the polling booth.

In some cases, older residents were sitting outside panting after negotiating the steps and had no cover from the sprinkling rain while struggled to fill in their ballot.

Some older residents had to complete their ballot outside the Southern Cross University pre-poll booth in Lismore. Picture: Nicholas Rupolo.

Disabled voters or those who need wheelchair access were barely able to enter the polling area.

“Everywhere you go the car spaces say ‘don’t park here, don’t park there’, we didn’t know where we could actually park,” Wendy said,

“We ended up parking ages away and had to go down all these steps to get here.

“What happens if it rains here, what if they slip? It’s not good enough”.

The Australian Electoral Commission was notified of the issues but struggled to find polling booths elsewhere in the Lismore area after the floods.

Part of a steep incline to access the Southern Cross University pre-poll booth in Lismore. Picture: Nicholas Rupolo.

Many venues did not have access to electricity or proper security arrangements.

The AEC conceded it was not an appropriate venue.

“We‘re aware that the early voting centre at the University is not fully accessible,” a spokesman said.

“While it provides Lismore voters with a pre-polling option, and we’re very appreciative to the university on short notice, it was not our first choice of venue.

“The university premises we’re using was in itself a secondary option on campus because a location in a common area in the university that was also an option didn’t have the required space or security arrangements.

“Ideally, we'd be able to secure all 8,000 voting venues we require for the federal election with full accessibility for the varying circumstances of all Australian voters.

“ However, with the scale and complexity of the temporary operation we run it’s just not possible in all locations, especially in proximity to a natural disaster.”

Thousands of voters have already cast their ballots for the 2022 federal election which is scheduled for May 21.