Maribyrnong City Council election

Enrolment

To vote in this election you must be correctly enrolled by 4 pm on Wednesday 7 August.

There are 2 types of enrolment:

1. state enrolment
2. council enrolment.

If you are enrolled, you must vote.

State-enrolled voters

You must enrol and vote if you:

• are an Australian citizen
• are 18 years or older
• have lived at your address for longer than one month.

Check my enrolment

Update my details

Enrol to vote

Council-enrolled voters

You can apply to enrol with your local council if you are:

• 18 years or older
• an owner ratepayer, occupier ratepayer or represent a corporation
• not already a state-enrolled voter in this council area.

You do not have to be an Australian citizen to become a council-enrolled voter.

Contact your local council directly to check if you are already council-enrolled voter or to apply to enrol.

Once you are enrolled, you must vote. If you don’t vote, you may get a fine.

Learn more about becoming a council-enrolled voter.

If you own multiple properties in one council

You are enrolled once and get one vote in this election.

If you are a state-enrolled voter and you pay rates on another property in this council, you will vote for your state-enrolled address.

If you own multiple properties across different councils

You can enrol once in each council get one vote in each council’s election.

You must vote for your state-enrolled address. It is optional to enrol for any properties you pay rates on in other councils, but once you enrol you must vote.

Exceptions apply to properties in Casey City Council and Whittlesea City Council.

Voting

Voting in this election is by post only.

We will post ballot packs to all enrolled voters from Monday 7 October.

Your ballot pack will contain:

• a ballot paper
• candidate statements
• a ballot paper envelope (for your vote to go in)
• a reply-paid envelope (for your ballot paper envelope to go in)
• a leaflet with instructions in other languages.

Find my candidates

The complete list of candidates in ballot draw order will be available on this website from Wednesday 18 September.

How to vote

Follow the instructions in your ballot pack to complete your vote.

Make sure you post it or drop it off at the election office before 6 pm on Friday 25 October.

Local mail collection times differ. Check the collection time on your post box to make sure your vote is in the mail on time.

Away during the election

If you’re going to be away between Monday 7 October and Friday 25 October, you may still be able to vote.

Options if you’re away during the election.

Large print or braille ballot packs

If you are blind or have low vision, you can register to get your ballot pack in large print or braille.

You only need to register once. If you've registered for past elections, there's no need to register again.

Registrations are open from Monday 15 July until 5 pm on Tuesday 10 September.

Candidates

If you wish to stand as a candidate in this election, nominations will:

• open on Monday 9 September
• close at 12 noon on Tuesday 17 September.

Candidate information session

Join us for an information session to learn more about becoming a candidate in this election. Details will be available in the coming weeks.

Check your eligibility

You must meet certain eligibility to become a candidate in a local council election.

Check your eligibility to become a candidate.

How to nominate

To nominate, you must:

• complete the Victorian Government’s free Local Government Candidate Training before nominating
• complete the nomination form
• make an appointment to submit your completed nomination form in person at the election office (available from Tuesday 20 August)
• pay the $250 nomination fee.

We also encourage you to provide a statement, photo and answer a questionnaire, but this is not compulsory.

Nomination form

Candidate Helper is an online tool to help you prepare your nomination and other documentation.

Candidate Helper will be available from Tuesday 20 August.

Candidate statement, photo and questionnaire

To give voters information about your background, qualifications and what you stand for, you can also provide:

• a candidate statement of up to 200 words
• a recent photo of yourself
• answers to the candidate questionnaire.

This information will be publicly available.

Authorising electoral campaign material

If you are sharing something that is considered 'electoral campaign material', you must authorise it.

These requirements apply to everyone at all times, not just candidates or during elections.

Learn more about authorising electoral campaign material.

The Local Government Inspectorate is responsible for enforcing these rules and investigating breaches. Visit lgi.vic.gov.au for more information.

Campaign donations

Candidates must disclose donations and gifts received in the lead up to an election.

The Local Government Inspectorate is responsible for enforcing these rules and investigating breaches. Visit lgi.vic.gov.au for more information.

Candidate resources

To learn more about how to nominate you can:

• download the Candidate Handbook
• download the Scrutineer Handbook
• read about becoming a local council candidate
• read the nomination guide.