Council elections

Council elections are held every four years and are run by the Victorian Electoral Commission

The next Kingston Council elections will be held in October 2024 via postal vote.

Our current Councillors were sworn in at a Special (Statutory) Meeting in October 2020. In the same year, the Victorian Government also introduced a new 11-ward model for the city.  

At the 2020 election, Kingston was split into 11 wards, with one Councillor to be elected to represent each ward.

Find out more about our wards

 

Voting entitlements

Enrolling as a ratepayer in Kingston

In a Victorian local council election there are two types of voters:

  1. State-enrolled
  2. Council-enrolled.

You have one vote in Kingston. If you are a state-enrolled voter, that is the enrolment you use to vote.

State-enrolled voters

You must enrol and vote if you:

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

For more information visit the VEC website

Council-enrolled voters (ratepayers)

Some ratepayers can apply to become council-enrolled voters in Kingston if they are:

  • a property owner, occupier or represent a corporation
  • 18 or older
  • not a State-enrolled voter within the Kingston area.

These are known as council-enrolled voters.

The rules for council-enrolled voters have changed ahead of the 2024 council elections. These changes are explained below.

Owner ratepayers

You can apply to enrol in Kingston if you:

  • own property and pay rates in the council area
  • are 18 or older
  • are not a state-enrolled voter who lives in Kingston.

    This includes:

  • Australian citizens who own a property in Kingston but do not live in the area (for example an investment or a holiday home)
  • non-citizens over 18 who own a property and live in Kingston.

Up to 2 ratepayers can apply to enrol per property, but each person only gets one vote. Applications for enrolment will be provided on this page shortly.

Occupier ratepayers

You can apply to enrol in Kingston if you:

  • pay rates for a property that you occupy but do not own
  • are 18 or older
  • are not a state-enrolled voter.

    Up to 2 people per property can apply to enrol, but each person only gets one vote. Applications for enrolment will be provided on this page shortly.

    Corporations

    You can apply to enrol to vote on behalf of a corporation if you:

  • are a director or company secretary of a corporation that pays rates (either as an owner or an occupier) in the council area
  • have consented to being appointed as the corporation’s representative
  • are not already a state-enrolled voter or council-enrolled voter for the same council.

Only one person can apply to enrol as the corporation’s representative. Applications for enrolment will be provided on this page shortly.

If you meet the criteria

If you meet any of these criteria, you can contact us to apply to enrol.

Once you are enrolled, you must vote for the October 2024 elections and onwards. If you don’t vote, you may get a fine. 

This diagram(PDF, 41KB) provides a breakdown on voting entitlements for the 2024 local elections.

Frequently Asked Questions(PDF, 41KB)

Resigning your enrolment

If you don’t want to vote for that property anymore, you can apply to resign your enrolment.

Expiry of enrolment

Occupier ratepayers’ and corporations’ enrolment expires before the next local government general election.

If you want to continue to vote, you must apply to enrol again before the next local council general election (2028).

Council will send you an invitation when it is time to renew your enrolment.

Owner ratepayers’ enrolment does not expire, but they can apply to resign their enrolment.

Council by-elections

By-elections before October 2024

If you were a council-enrolled voter in Kingston at the 2020 local council general elections and your circumstances haven’t changed, you will be automatically enrolled for any by-elections that take place before October 2024. It is not compulsory for you to vote.

If you weren’t a council-enrolled voter in Kingston at the 2020 local council general elections, or your circumstances have changed, you can apply to enrol at any by-elections that take place before October 2024. It is not compulsory for you to vote.

If you want to vote in the next local council general election in October 2024, you will need to apply to enrol again.

By-elections after October 2024

If you apply to enrol for the local council elections in 2024, you will remain enrolled for any council by-elections up until 2028. It will be compulsory for you to vote.

 

 

Candidate Information Sessions

Interested in running for Council? Kingston will host candidate information sessions in 2024 that will provide information on:

  • the role of Council
  • the role of a Councillor
  • roles and responsibilities
  • time commitments
  • information on how to enrol

Council will provide further information on the candidate information sessions shortly.

Election Campaign Donation Returns

Under the Local Government Act 2020, we publish a summary of all Election Campaign Donation Returns on our website.

Donation Returns must be submitted by candidates within 40 days of the election.  

Read the Summary of Election Campaign Donation Returns(PDF, 71KB)  for the 2020 election.