Victorian communities have just found out they’ve lost their voting booths

Dozens of small Victorian communities have been shocked to learn the Australian Electoral Commission has pulled the pin on setting up a booth in its area this Saturday.

And to add to the insult, no-one at the AEC has bothered to contact them.

The Weekly Times reports there are closures statewide, but the hardest hit appears to be western Victoria, with 15 in Mallee.

Ed Gannon, editor of the Weekly Times, told Ross and John the residents deserve an explanation.

They haven’t actually found out about it until they’ve rung up and said ‘How come you haven’t booked the hall yet for the AEC?’,” he explained.

“Cann River (in east Gippsland) is 75km from the nearest polling booth in Orbost, so that’s a 150km round trip.

“It’s a $20 fine not to vote at this election, so you’ve got to sit there and say ‘Am I going to drive 150km or pay a $20 fine?’.”

Click PLAY for the full chat, including Ed’s answer to Ross’s question: