Types of elections

The VEC administers State elections, local council elections, liquour licensing polls and community and commercial elections.

Australia is a representative democracy, which means we elect representatives to make decisions on our behalf. Voters elect representatives at regular intervals to each of the three levels of government; State, local council and Federal.

State elections

State elections are held on the last Saturday of November every four years. The next State election will be held on Saturday 24 November 2018.

Victoria is divided into 88 districts (the Lower House) and eight regions (the Upper House). In a State election, you vote for one representative for your district and five representatives for your region.

If a district vacancy occurs during the term of the Parliament, a by-election is conducted.

Local council elections

Local council elections are held on the fourth Saturday of October every four years. The next round of council elections will be held on Saturday 24 October 2020.

Local councils make decisions about services in your neighborhood.

To find out more about your local council please view our local council profiles.

If a vacancy occurs during a council term, the vacancy will be filled via a by-election or countback depending on the electoral structure applying.

Extraordinary vacancies

When an elected representative resigns or is otherwise unable to complete their term, the vacancy may be filled by either a countback, by-election or appointment.

For more details about the various methods and when they are applied, please see countbacks, by-elections and appointments.

Federal elections

Federal elections are conducted by the Australian Electoral Commission (external link)

Australia’s Federal government makes decisions about issues that affect all Australians. The Federal Parliament (external link) has both an Upper (Senate) and Lower House (House of Representatives), which function in a similar way to the Victorian Parliament.