Party registration review

After a state election, we must review registered political parties to make sure they meet the ongoing requirements to stay registered. Any party that received less than 4% of first preference votes (averaged out over all the electorates it contested at an election) is subject to this review.

To stay registered, we must verify that a party has at least 500 members that are:

  • current members
  • on the Victorian electoral roll
  • not a member of another registered political party in Victoria or a political party applying for registration in Victoria.

Any party that does not meet this ongoing legislative requirement will be deregistered and cannot register again until after the next state election.

Parties under review

Registration reviews following the 2022 State election are now complete.

Registration review results

Registration review process

  • Step 1: Notify the party

    We will notify a registered political party when it is under review.

    Within 30 days, it must provide us with:

    • the names and contact details of at least 500 current members
    • an up-to-date copy of its constitution.

    Each party is responsible for maintaining an up-to-date list of its members.

    A party can voluntarily deregister at this stage, and it will not be eligible to register again until after the next State election. If a party chooses to take part in the review, we will move to the next step.

  • Step 2: Sample member verification

    We will contact a random sample of party members over 4 weeks to verify their eligibility.

    If we can verify the minimum number of members, the party meets its requirements and can stay registered.

    If we can’t verify the minimum number of members, the party can either:

    • choose to deregister
    • move on to a full member verification.
  • Step 3 (optional): Full member verification

    If the party doesn’t choose to deregister after the sample member verification, we will contact the full list of party members to verify them.

    We must verify 500 members for the party to meet the eligibility requirements to stay registered.

    • Outcome of a review

    After a review, a party will either keep its registration or be deregistered. Any party that has been deregistered cannot register again until after the next State election.

    We will notify the party of the outcome. Where applicable, we will also update the register of political parties and place a notice in the Victoria Government Gazette.

    A deregistered party may still have funding and disclosure obligations under the Electoral Act.

    Information for party members

    If you are a member of a political party that is under review, the party may provide us with your name and contact details so we can verify your membership.

    We do not share any individual responses with political parties. We handle all personal information we receive in line with the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014.

    Benefits of maintaining registration

    A registered political party:

    • can have the party's name printed on State election ballot papers next to the names of the party's endorsed candidates
    • can nominate all its candidates and register how-to-vote cards centrally, rather than individually in each district election office
    • is entitled to public funding based on the number of votes it receives at a State election
    • is entitled to access enrolment information, not including phone numbers or email address, which it can use for permitted purposes.

    An unregistered party can still participate in an election but is not entitled to the above.

    More information

    Read the determination on member verification for political party registration.

    There is more information about political party reviews in Section 52 of the Electoral Act 2002.