Representatives of the accounting firm of Ernst & Young arrive at the 68th Annual Golden Globe awards.     Do the winners of the annual Golden Globe awards know in advance they will be receiving an award? No. And either do the voters of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. In fact nobody knows except three executives at the accountancy firm of Ernst & Young whose job is to ensure the secrecy of the HFPA’s voting ballots and to conduct the ballot tabulation process with security, integrity and reliability. “The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has relied on Ernst & Young for the accuracy of the Golden Globe® Award results for almost four decades,” said Andy Sale, the company’s lead partner. “Ernst & Young is proud of its role in maintaining the integrity of the entire balloting process.” Some facts about the Golden Globes voting, balloting and tabulation process:

• Winners are known only to three senior Ernst & Young executives in advance of the telecast;
• Ernst & Young is also responsible for qualifying voting members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, confirming that their credentials are current and meet the standards set forth by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association;
• Ernst & Young controls the entire voting process beginning with the nomination ballots, and maintains control of the ballots until the telecast is over;
• Results are triple-checked to eliminate any margin of error.

Winners’ envelopes are assembled and maintained exclusively under Ernst & Young’s control until they are handed  to each celebrity presenter moments before they appear on-stage. The winners’ excitement come Sunday will not be a display of award-worthy acting chops. It is genuine.