With many Hume voters expected to vote before polling day on July 2, Federal Member for Hume Angus Taylor has advised that residents can apply to lodge a postal vote through Australia Post.

Residents will have received in recent days a letter in the post inviting them to apply for a Postal Vote Application pack.

“If you are unable to get to a polling booth to vote on Election Day, a postal vote is perfectly acceptable. You can also vote at local prepoll centres, which will be set up in the weeks before Election Day at several locations in Hume,” Mr Taylor said.

At the 2013 Federal election 1,343 Hume residents voted via postal vote and more than 1.3 million postal vote applications were received nationally.

The Australian Electoral Commission will shortly be mailing voting packages to voters who have applied for a postal vote.

“There are many reasons why someone may need to submit a postal vote - if you know you will be outside the electorate on polling day, if you are travelling, or if you are seriously ill.

“Because more and more people are voting early, I encourage people to get organised if they know already that they will not be here on July 2.”

You can apply for a postal vote online at www.aec.gov.au. The AEC must receive your application by 6pm on the Wednesday before polling day for your application to be accepted.

Return your completed application as soon as possible and ensure you leave enough time for your vote to be completed by polling day and returned to the AEC.

For more details on postal vote eligibility, visit the AEC website at www.aec.gov.au.