Vote counting process unpacked: What happens after you cast your vote on the ballot?

GUEST – Micheal Atkins – Elections analyst
Once the results have been counted and finalised, the presiding officer and party agents will, in the presence of observers, sign the result slip which is then placed in a tamper-evident bag and transported to the results capture centre.
At the results capture centre, a check and balance process ensue. This includes checking that the result slip is correct, it has the details of the voting station and those of the presiding offer as well as the voting station’s unique barcode. This will then be captured onto the system using the double-blind method.
Using the barcode, the results slip will then be scanned, and the results are electronically matched to the appropriate voting district.
External auditors will then audit result slips to ensure the capturing was conducted correctly.
The results are taken through the IEC’s exception parameters. If an exception is flagged, the results will be investigated and taken through a recapture process.
Once results pass the test, it will become final and available to political parties, independent candidates, and the media.