Council to investigate claims of potential voter fraud
The Adelaide City Council will urgently investigate claims made by its Deputy Lord Mayor concerning the integrity of an upcoming supplementary election.
The council will commence “an urgent investigation, to the extent possible” into concerns raised by Deputy Lord Mayor Phillip Martin about alleged voter fraud, revealed by InDaily on Tuesday.
Councillor Henry Davis moved a motion without notice at last night’s meeting to investigate the concerns and return a report to the council as soon as possible.
The motion noted the comments made publicly by Martin and a government spokesperson in yesterday’s article, and requested Martin provide the council with the information he possesses about alleged voter fraud and his correspondence with the Attorney General.
Martin sent a letter to the Attorney General and Local Government Minister on Monday with concerns that potential illegal voting could happen again in this month’s City of Adelaide Central Ward election.
The letter said Martin received information about enrolments and voter declaration forms from 2022 that “appear to have been forged by individuals” and were not raised in a previous long-running court case investigating illegal ballot practices.
A government spokesperson told InDaily on Tuesday that improper or illegal behaviour is a matter for an independent body like the Electoral Commissioner, SAPOL or the Court of Disputed Returns.
As of Wednesday, InDaily understands no contact has been made with the Electoral Commission of South Australia (ECSA) by any individual concerning new allegations of potential voter fraud in Central Ward.
Electoral Commissioner Mick Sherry told InDaily he is not aware of any allegations of forged voter registrations in the 2022 City of Adelaide election that were not raised in the previous Court of Disputed Returns case.
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When InDaily asked Martin today if he had provided the information to the Commissioner, SAPOL or another independent body, he said he is “unable to make any further comment publicly or privately”.
In the court case between Alexander Hyde v Electoral Commissioner, Jing Li, Judge Michael Burnett found that 24 ballot papers from the 2022 council election were subject to illegal practices.
InDaily asked the Commissioner what action has been taken to prevent ballot papers from being reissued to those associated with fraudulent ballots in the 2025 Central Ward supplementary election.
To that, Sherry said, “legislation requires ballot papers must be sent to eligible electors on the Council Voter Roll.
“To ensure the integrity of the electoral process, Electoral Commission has systems and safeguards in place.”
When asked how voter registrations are vetted for council elections, Sherry explained that to vote in council elections, a person must be an elector on the State House of Assembly roll, a resident that’s lived in the area for at least a month or a property owner in the area.
“The Electoral Commission and Councils monitor for unusual activity, such as multiple enrolments from the same address or repeated voter roll submissions,” Sherry said.
“The Electoral Commission of South Australia (ECSA) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of electoral integrity in all elections, including the Central ward supplementary election.
“The systems and safeguards in place are designed to ensure every eligible vote is counted and that the process remains secure, transparent, and fair.”
Martin told the council meeting last night that he remains committed to deterring any illegal voting activity in the upcoming Central Ward by-election.
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“My concern, and that of the party which provided the information to me, is that the identities provided could remain on the supplementary role for the Central Ward and could have the potential to provide the basis for a legal challenge for the result in next month’s elections,” he told the chamber.
“I offered to provide to the state’s principal legal officer the information passed to me so that there might be urgent action to ensure public confidence in the vote ahead to deter any illegal voting activity, and I remain committed to that undertaking.”
Martin then left the room during the debate on the council’s action on this matter due to a conflict of interest.
Councillor Mary Couros said she was “very disappointed” in Martin and was concerned that this information had not reached the appropriate authorities.
“I’m very disappointed in Councillor Martin going to the media with this,” she said.
“I am extremely disappointed he didn’t go directly to the authorities. I am concerned that he hasn’t done so. That is what he should have done from the beginning, and now the matter is in our hands, because it’s out there, and we need to do the right thing.
“And we need to make sure that this election that we have before us, the supplementary election, is legit, and we’re not going to be dragged through the courts again, and that we have got good elected members.
“Elected members that have been not elected through any process of fraud, and here to represent the ratepayers, that’s what we’re here to do.”
Councillor Davis told the meeting that the “extremely serious allegations” must be investigated.
“We have some 19 candidates who are eagerly awaiting the distribution the balloting material and extremely serious allegations have been put forward into the public which undermines the confidence of that outcome, really not as any fault or any criticism of councillor Martin, but that is simply the reality of those comments, they are severe in their highest form,” Davis said.
“I’m requesting that we as a council do everything within our power, to our extent possible, to deal with any of those issues.
“It could very well be the case that after conducting an investigation, there is nothing we can do, or there is no power for us to continue.
“However, it may be the case that information would be forthcoming, and perhaps we could then at least refer that to a relevant authority who would then appropriately deal with it.”
Candidates have been announced for the supplementary election and ballots are due to be mailed out on July 29, ahead of voting closing on August 25.
The next round of general council elections is due in November 2026, and it is understood that the Local Government Minister Joe Szakacs will introduce legislative reform to strengthen local government elections by then.
A spokesperson told InDaily on Tuesday that the Minister will consider recommendations from the Commissioner to strengthen elections and introduce a bill to Parliament by the end of this year.
