Voting

Local councils make decisions about local issues, for example:

  • sporting facilities and recreation reserves
  • libraries and community centres
  • animal registrations
  • rubbish and recycling collection.

 

When are the next local council elections?

The next local council elections will be held in October 2024.

 

Voting

Voting in council elections may be:

  • postal – voters in the area receive a ballot pack by mail
  • attendance – voters in the area go to a voting centre to vote.

The voting system for all Victorian local councils is set by the Minister for Local Government. We will let you know the method for your council before an election.

If you own more than one property in a council area, you only get one vote.

 

Enrolling and voting in council elections

In a council election there are 2 types of voters:

  • State-enrolled voters
  • Council-enrolled voters.

 

State-enrolled voters

You must vote in your local council election if you are on the State roll by 4.00 pm on the day the roll closes. If you do not vote, you may get a fine.

To find out if you are on the State roll, go to Check my enrolment

 

Council-enrolled voters

It is not compulsory for council-enrolled voters to vote.

Council-enrolled voters include people such as ratepayers who qualify to be automatically enrolled by their council or have applied to council to be enrolled. To learn more about council-enrolled voters read Enrolling for local council elections

 

Who you elect

In a local council election, you are voting for people to become councillors.

You will be voting for someone in your ward to represent your section of the community.

To check the structure of your council, look up local council profiles.

After all the councillors have been elected, they decide who will act as mayor.

Related Information

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