Council elections
Council Elections are held every four years. The next Council election will be held in October 2020 by postal vote. Voting closes at 6pm Friday 23 October 2020.
The election will be conducted by the Victorian Electoral Commission. The electoral structure for the 2020 Moira Shire election is nine Councillors to be elected for a four year term to provide representation across an unsubdivided municipality.
Under the new requirements included in the Local Government Act 2020, all candidates for the upcoming election must complete the Victorian Local Government Mandatory Candidate Training course to be eligible to nominate with the Victorian Electoral Commission. This includes all serving or former councillors intending to nominate.
Council will be in a caretaker role during the five-week election period leading up to the Council Election, being from midnight on Tuesday 22 September 2020 to 6pm on Saturday 24 October 2020. During this time, Council will operate in a limited capacity to safeguard the authority of the incoming Council, with actions or decisions being rescheduled where possible. In addition to being a statutory requirement, observance of a caretaker period is important to support probity and confidence in the election process.
View Councils Caretaker (Election Period) Policy here.
If you have any queries please contact our Governance Department on
(03) 5871 9222.
Key dates
- Friday 28 August 4pm
Close of voters roll
- Wednesday 16 September to Friday 23 October
Election Office open to public
- Thursday 17 September
Candidate nomination period opens.
-
Tuesday 22 September - 12 noon
Candidate nomination period closes.
-
Tuesday 6 October to Thursday 8 October
Mailout of ballot packs
-
Friday 23 October - 6pm
Close of voting
-
Friday 13 November
Election to be declared by this date
Information for Candidates
Passionate community members who want to have a greater say in future decisions at the local level should consider standing for council at the October 2020 elections.
Victoria’s new Local Government Act 2020 includes some changes to who can become a local council election candidate and how.
For more information on becoming a council election candidate visit:
Becoming a Council Election Candidate - VEC
Stand for Council - Vic Councils
VEC Candidate Information Sessions & Mandatory Candidate Training
Information Sessions
The VEC will provide information about standing for election for Council. The information sessions will be held online due to the the COVID-19 pandemic. The information sessions will cover the election timeline, the procedures and rules relevant to candidates.
The VEC’s candidate information session will be recorded and can be streamed online from Thursday 3 September 2020.
The recorded version will be complemented by three state-wide interactive candidate seminars based on the information session video which will be held on the following dates:
- Wednesday 9 September - 7 pm
- Sunday 13 September - 1 pm
- Tuesday 15 September- 5 pm
To watch the information session or find out how to join an online interactive seminar, visit the VEC website.
Mandatory Training
The Local Government Act 2020 requires all candidates to complete the Victorian Government’s Local Government Mandatory Candidate Training course to be eligible to nominate. This includes all serving and former councillors intending to nominate.
Mandatory Candidate Training for the 2020 Local Government elections will be delivered through a short online course due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The online course will take around an hour to complete and ensure candidates fully understand the role of councillor and its requirements.
The course can be found at https://www.localgovernment.vic.gov.au/council-governance/candidate-training
Information for Voters
Voters Roll
To vote in the 2020 Council Election you must be enrolled to vote by 4pm Friday 28 August 2020.
Please check your enrolment and eligibility on Victorian Electoral Commission website.
If you are not a State enrolled voter, but you pay rates in Moira Shire Council, you may still be entitled to be enrolled for the Moira Shire Council elections. Please contact Council on (03) 5871 9222.
State-Enrolled Voters
You are already enrolled to vote in these elections if:
- you will be over 18 years of age on Saturday 24 October 2020 AND
- you live in the Moira Shire Council AND
- you are on the State electoral roll for your current address.
For state enrolment enquiries contact the VEC on 131 832.
Council-Enrolled Voters
You are automatically enrolled to vote in these elections if you had an entitlement on the 2016 roll, providing your name and the entitled property address is the same as it was in 2016.
If you didn't have an entitlement in 2016 and wish to vote in the 2020 Election, you will need to make an application.
For example, if you purchased a property in Moira Shire Council in December 2018 and live outside the Moira Shire Council, you will need to apply to vote.
Application to Enrol
Ratepayers may apply to enrol if:
- own a property in Moira Shire, that you did not own by the 2016 Election entitlement date (26 August 2016), and you reside outside of the municipality
- own or occupy rateable property in the Moira Shire and reside in the Moira Shire municipality, but you are not on the State electoral roll (includes non-Australian citizens) OR
- are a director or company secretary of a corporation (or hold an equivalent position in an Association), such as an owners’ corporation, that occupies rateable property solely or jointly within the Moira Shire municipality.
To apply to enrol, the relevant application form must be completed and returned to council by
4pm on 28 August 2020.
Corporation occupier - Appointment of voting representative(PDF, 41KB)
Corporation owner - Appointment of voting representative(PDF, 41KB)
Occupier Ratepayer - Application for enrolment(PDF, 39KB)
Owner Ratepayer - Application for enrolment(PDF, 39KB)
Owner Ratepayer - Variation of enrolled voters(PDF, 42KB)
VEC - Election Office
The VEC’s Election Office is located at Shop 1, 37 Bank Street, Cobram.
For further details regarding office hours, please visit the VEC website.