State elections

The State Government makes decisions about issues that affect Victorians, for example:

hospitals
crime prevention
education and training
transport and road safety.

Next state election

We hold state elections on the last Saturday in November every 4 years. This date is set by the Electoral Act 2002 (Vic).

The next state election is on Saturday 28 November 2026.

Voting

You can cast your vote at any voting centre in Victoria on election day. There are also options for:

early voting
postal voting
overseas and interstate voting.

Who must vote

You must enrol and vote in a state election if you:

are 18 years or older
are an Australian citizen
have lived in Victoria for longer than a month.

If you are enrolled and do not vote, we may send you a fine.

Who you elect

The Parliament of Victoria is divided into:

the Legislative Assembly (lower house)
the Legislative Council (upper house).

In a state election, you are voting for:

one person to represent your area in the lower house – this area is called a district.
5 people to represent your area in the upper house – this area is called a region.

The people you elect are called Members of Parliament (MPs).

The lower house

There are 88 MPs in the lower house, one for each district in Victoria. The party or coalition with majority support in the lower house forms the Victorian Government.

The upper house

There are 40 MPs in the upper house, 5 for each region in Victoria. Upper house MPs review legislation that has been passed by lower house MPs.

Election timeline

25 days before election day

The term of Parliament finishes and the Governor of Victoria issues writs for the election. The writ is a document commanding us to hold an election. Candidates can nominate for election once the writs have been issued.

18 days before election day

People who are eligible to be on the roll have until 8 pm to enrol or update their details. This is 7 days after the issue of the writ.

15 days before election day

Candidates can nominate until 12 noon on close of nomination day.

12 days before election day

Early voting opens. People can vote at any early voting centre within Victoria until 6 pm on the day before election day. Early voting is also available at a number of interstate and overseas locations.

Election day

It must be the last Saturday in November. People can vote at any voting centre in Victoria between 8 am and 6 pm on election day.

21 days after election day

Return of the writs. After all results are declared, we return the writs to the Governor of Victoria. The writs include the names of the elected candidates in both houses of Parliament.