Appointment of new electoral commissioner

NSW Premier Mike Baird today announced the appointment of John Schmidt as the State’s new Electoral Commissioner.

Mr Schmidt has held senior roles in the Commonwealth and NSW public service, including as chief executive officer of the Australian Transaction Reports & Analysis Centre. AUSTRAC is Australia's financial intelligence unit with regulatory responsibility for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing.

“As part of our reforms to clean up politics in NSW, we established a new Electoral Commission with appropriate investigative functions and a clear mandate to institute criminal and civil proceedings for breaches of electoral laws,” Mr Baird said.

“In John Schmidt we have a person with the right skills and experience to lead the organisation into the future.”

Mr Schmidt will commence in the role on 8 August 2016. His term runs for seven years.

Linda Franklin will remain as Acting Commissioner until Mr Schmidt commences, and will continue to oversee the management of local government elections scheduled for 10 September.