Voting on election day is a tradition for people living in the East Pilbara town of Marble Bar, but residents who want to vote on May 21 will have to undertake a 500km round trip to Port Hedland to put forward their preference for the seat of Durack.
They have been told by the Australian Electoral Commission they could have voted at a mobile booth which was run in the town from 10am until 1pm on Tuesday or they could attempt a postal vote.
Failing that, they could make the long drive to Port Hedland.
But residents have described the three-hour voting window as difficult to make and Marble Bar's remote location meant mail was often slow and backlogged.
Marble Bar usually runs a polling booth on election day to service town residents as well as people from surrounding mines, stations and travellers.
Yarrie Station owner Annabelle Coppin, who lives 90km north of Marble Bar, said people accepted that living remotely meant having to drive fairly long distances to get to the polls.
But she said driving to Port Hedland would be an all-day affair.
"People work so voting on a Tuesday is pretty impossible," she said.
She said postal voting was an ineffective alternative.
"Our postal vote only arrived this week, that's how late it was because our mail is so slow," she said.
Voting 'a challenge' in remote areas
Ms Coppin said rural communities weren't a priority for the Australian Electoral Commission.
"We don't have as many people [and] there's not as much of a voice so you kind of get dropped off, pushed down the chain and told to put up with it," she said.
An Australian Electoral Commission spokesperson said election day polling was harder to manage in remote areas.
"As a small, remote location we are not always able to provide a static polling place.
The spokesperson said that was largely due to the organisation's ability to recruit staff, secure premises and the need for such a service.
"With a small voting population mobile voting is often the solution and a significant effort for the Australian Electoral Commission," the spokesperson said.
Ms Coppin said it was a cop out not to run polling booths in Marble on Saturday.
"We should have the same voting rights as other Australians," Ms Coppin said.
The commission spokesperson said changes to voting arrangements had been advertised.
But Ms Coppin said many people didn't see the ads.
"There's a long held understanding that people can vote in town on election day," she said.
"People will undoubtedly show up on Saturday dumbfounded that they can't vote in town."
She said some people would not be able to vote if a 500km drive was the only way to make it to the polls.
