You know the routine. Election days rolls around and you have to duck and weave the masses of diehard supporters trying to unload their preferred how-to-vote cards on you.

Every election day for me is simple: get in, do my civic duty and leave with a sausage sandwich and maybe a bundle of comedically named cupcakes from the nearest friendly P&C cake stall.

The side-quest of this is to make it home without an added pile of recycling.

On one occasion, in my efforts to avoid the handouts, I snubbed Australia's now Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

I grew up on the NSW Far South Coast, and was living in Merimbula when it came to a prominent by-election in July 2020 following the retirement, through illness, of its Federal MP Mike Kelly.

The media circus was in full swing with camera crews from nearly a half-dozen prime time channels outside the polling booths, and when I showed up to the local primary school to cast my ballot I was determined to avoid them.

So when a dainty mitt politely extended from the scrum to shake my hand I rather rudely waived it away.

I looked back and with some embarrassment realised I had rejected Albo.

Most Aussies would have seen the TV footage of Scott Morrison being snubbed for handshakes during an unscripted stop to Cobargo following the Black Summer bushfires a few months earlier.

I went home, dreading seeing my grizzled election day appearance all over prime time news in the same way the Scomo snubbing was.

To my relief it never came about; the cameras must have missed it.

I still dread having to run the gauntlet of the party supporters, but at least the democracy sausages are back on the barbecue.