Become a local council candidate

To become a candidate in a local council election, you must:

  • be an Australian citizen
  • be 18 years or older
  • be enrolled in the council you're contesting
  • have completed the mandatory Local Government candidate training
  • not be disqualified from being a councillor.

You cannot be a candidate if any of the following apply to you:

  • you are an undischarged bankrupt
  • you have property that is subject to control under the law relating to bankruptcy
  • you are employed by the council you're contesting. You can take leave from your role to nominate
  • you have been convicted of any of the criminal offences referred to in the Local Government Act 2020
  • you are a councillor of another council, including interstate councils
  • you are member of any Australian state or federal parliament
  • you are employed by a federal or state member of parliament as a ministerial officer, a parliamentary adviser or an electorate officer. You can take leave from your role to nominate
  • you are otherwise incapable of becoming or continuing to be a councillor.

Further details are outlined in the Local Government Act 2020.

Seek independent legal advice if you're not sure you're eligible to nominate.

Getting a copy of the roll

After nominations close, you can request a free electronic copy of the roll for the election you are contesting to assist with campaigning.

We do not give out:

  • email addresses
  • phone numbers
  • details of silent electors.

You must declare that you will only use roll data for campaigning. You must also destroy or return your copy of the roll within 30 days of election day. Strict penalties apply for misusing roll data.

Funding and donations

There is no public funding for candidates in local council elections.

Within 40 days after election day, you must complete and submit an election donation return to the Chief Executive Officer of the council you nominated in.

The election donation return must either disclose gifts you receive in the lead up to an election or provide a statement that no gifts were received.

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

Please note that donation disclosure requirements for local council candidates are different to State election candidates.

Uncontested elections

If the number of candidates in an election is the same as the number of vacancies, those candidates are elected without the need for a vote. This is called being elected unopposed, or an uncontested election.

If there are fewer candidates than vacancies, the candidates who nominated are declared elected. A by-election is held at a future date to fill the remaining vacancies.

If nobody nominates as a candidate, no voting takes place and another election is held as soon as possible.

Ballot paper order

The position of each candidate on the ballot paper is determined by a single computerised random draw for each council after nominations close.

The exception is Melbourne City Council, where the Leadership Team ballot is determined by a single randomised draw, and the councillors ballot is randomly drawn in two parts:

  • the order of the groups above the line
  • the order of the ungrouped candidates.

The computerised draw software has been independently audited and certified, determining that the draw is completely random. View the software component that generates the random order for the ballot.