Local Government Electoral Act 2011
Queensland Local
Government Electoral
Act 2011 Current as at [Not
applicable] Indicative reprint note This is an
unofficial version of a
reprint of this Act that incorporates all proposed
amendments to
the Act included
in the Local
Government Electoral
(Implementing Stage
1 of Belcarra)
and Other Legislation Amendment
Bill 2018. This
indicative reprint
has been prepared
for information only— it is not an
authorised reprint of the Act .
The
point-in-time date for this indicative reprint is the introduction
date for the Local Government Electoral (Implementing
Stage 1 of Belcarra) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018—6
March 2018. Detailed information about
indicative reprints
is available on
the Information page of the
Queensland legislation website.
©
State of Queensland 2018 This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Not
authorised —indicative only
Queensland Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Contents Part 1
1 2 3
4 5 6
7 Part 2 Division 1
8 Division 2 9
10 11 12
13 14 15
16 Part 3 Division 1
17 18 19
20 21 Page
Preliminary Short title . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 11 Commencement . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
11 Purposes of Act . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
11 Definitions . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 11 Particular references in this Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
References to
divisions includes wards
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
12
Meaning of conclusion of
local government election
. . . . . . . . . .
13
Administration Electoral
commission Additional functions and powers of electoral commission . . . . . . 14
Electoral officers for local government elections Returning
officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Assistant returning officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Presiding
officers . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Issuing officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
16
Membership
of a political party
ends particular appointments . .
16
Obligation to notify of membership of
a political
party .
. . . . . . . .
16
Returning officer may act through other
officers .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
16
Assistant returning officer may act through other officers
. . . . . .
17
Voters rolls and
register of
special postal voters
Voters rolls Returning
officer must compile voters
roll .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
When
voters roll must be compiled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
18
Requirements of
voters roll
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Inspection of voters roll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
19
Supply of voters
roll to
candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Contents
Not authorised —indicative
only Division 2 21A
Part
4 Division 1 22
23 24 Division 2
Subdivision 1 25 26
27 28 29
30 32 33
34 35 36
37 38 Subdivision
2 39
40 Subdivision 3 41 42
43 Division 3 Subdivision
1 44
45 Subdivision 2 46 47
Page
2 Register of special postal voters
Electoral commission to keep register of
special postal voters . . Local government elections
Local government elections
Types of elections . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date of quadrennial elections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date of by-elections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Candidates for local government elections Nominations of
candidates Calling for
nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Who may be nominated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Making and certification of
nomination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grounds for
deciding a
person is
not properly
nominated .
. . . . . Effect
of multiple nominations .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Withdrawal of
consent to
nomination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Announcement of nominations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Death of candidate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Procedure if number of candidates not
more than
number required Procedure if
number of
candidates exceeds number
required . .
Procedure on death of candidate when
poll to
be conducted
. . . If successful candidate dies
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Extension of times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Deposits accompanying nomination Deposit to
accompany nomination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Disposal of deposits generally
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Recording of membership
and agents
for group
of candidates Record of
membership in group of candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Appointment
of agent
for group
of candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Register of group agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Arrangements for
local government elections Polls by
ballots Poll by ballot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Direction that poll be conducted by postal ballot
. . . . . . . . . . . . . Polling booths Kinds of polling booths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Polling
booths—general . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
19 20 21 21
22
22
23
25
27
27
27
28
28
29
30
31
31
32
32
33
34
34
35
35
36
37
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Contents
48 49 50
51 52 53
Subdivision 3 54 55
56 57 58
Subdivision 4 59 Subdivision
5 63
Division 4 64
Division 5 Subdivision
1 65
66 Subdivision 2 67 68
69 70 72
73 74 75
Subdivision 2A 75A 75B
Provision of ordinary polling booths
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Declaration of mobile polling booths . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Declaration of pre-polling booths . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Duty
of person in charge of institution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 40 Privacy for electors casting votes at
polling booths . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Adjournment of
poll .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
41
Ballot boxes, ballot papers
and other
documents Ballot boxes
generally .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
41
Ballot papers .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Ballot papers for
separate polls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Order of candidates’ names on ballot papers
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
43
Distribution
of ballot
papers and
voters roll
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Scrutineers Scrutineers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Errors, omissions or delays
Correction of errors, omissions
or delays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Who
may vote Who may vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
47
How
voting takes place System of
voting System of voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Compulsory
voting .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Casting votes Ways in which to
cast votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Who may cast votes
in particular
ways .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Who
must complete a declaration envelope
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
51
Casting an ordinary vote or pre-poll vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Casting a postal
vote by
elector other
than special
postal voter
. 53 Voting hours for polling booths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Particular responsibilities of returning officer when electors cast
postal votes
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . 55 Particular responsibilities of issuing
officers when electors cast ordinary or pre-poll
votes . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
55
Electronically assisted voting Prescribed procedures for electronically
assisted voting . . . . . . 56
Audit of electronically assisted voting
for an
election . . . . . . . . . 57
Page 3
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Contents 75C
75D 75E Subdivision
3 76 77 78
Subdivision 4 79 80
81 82 Subdivision
5 83
84 85 Division 6
86 87 88
Division 7 Subdivision
1 89
91 Subdivision 2 92 93
Subdivision 3 95 96
96A Subdivision 4 Protection of information technology .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Electoral commissioner may decide
electronically assisted voting is not to be
used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Review of electronically assisted
voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
58 Special arrangements for particular
electors Arrangements for electors at hospitals etc.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Arrangements for electoral visitor voting .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Help for electors voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Distribution of
ballot papers Applications to
cast postal
votes in
local government elections
that are not postal ballot elections
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
62 Distribution of ballot papers to
electors for postal ballot elections 63
Applications to cast postal votes in postal
ballot elections . . . . . 64
Distribution of ballot papers to particular
electors whose address has been
omitted from
electoral roll and to special postal voters
. . .
65
Recording a
vote on
ballot papers How electors must record a vote on a
ballot paper—optional-preferential voting . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
66
How
electors must record a vote on a ballot paper—first-past-the-post voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
67
Replacement
ballot papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
67
Formal and
informal votes Formal and informal ballot
papers—optional-preferential
voting . 69
Formal and informal ballot
papers—first-past-the-post voting . . . 70
Ballot paper partly formal and partly informal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Counting of votes Processing
declaration envelopes Preliminary
processing of
declaration envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . .
71
Procedure for processing declaration envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . .
72
Preliminary counts Preliminary
counting of
ordinary votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Objections by
scrutineers during preliminary
count .
. . . . . . . . . .
75
Official count Official
counting of votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
76
Objections by
scrutineers during official
count . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
78
Re-counting of
votes .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Deciding results of local government elections Page
4
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Contents
Not
authorised
—indicative only
97 98 99
Division 8 100
101 102 103
104 Part 5 105
Part
6 Division 1 106
107 108 109
110 111 112
Division 1A 113
113A 113B 113C
113D 113E 113F
113G Division 2 Subdivision
1 114
115 Subdivision 2 116
Counting of votes for optional-preferential
system . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Counting of votes for first-past-the-post
system . . . . . . . . . . . . .
81 Returning officer’s duty after
counting votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Notifying the results of local government
elections etc. Notifying the results of an election
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Notice of results of poll to candidates
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
84
Storage and disposal of material resulting
from election
. . . . . . . 85
Notice to electors whose ballot papers are not accepted
. . . . . . 85
Notice to
electoral commission of error in electoral roll . . . . . . . . 86
Fresh elections Arrangements
for fresh
election . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Electoral funding and financial
disclosure Preliminary Definitions for
part .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Meaning of gifts
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
89
Meaning of value
of gifts
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Meaning of relevant details
for gifts
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
References
to candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
91
Agents and campaign committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Related corporations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
92
Political donations from property
developers Meaning of
prohibited donor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Meaning of political donation
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
95
Political donations by prohibited
donors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Recovery of prohibited donations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
97
Making of
determination that entity is not a prohibited donor . . .
99
Revocation of
determination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
99
Register of determinations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
99
Review of decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Disclosure periods Disclosure period for candidates Disclosure
period for candidates who
were previously candidates in
a local government
election . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 100 Disclosure period—other
candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 101 Disclosure period for groups of
candidates Disclosure period for groups of candidates .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Page 5
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Contents Division 3
117 118 119
120 121 122
Division 4 123
124 125 Division 5
126 127 Division 6
128 129 130
Division 6A 130A
Division 7 131
132 132A 133
134 Part 7 Division 1
136 137 138
139 140 141
Disclosure by candidates Gifts to
candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 102 Gifts to groups of candidates . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Particular gifts not to be received
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Loans to candidates or groups of
candidates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
107 Particular
loans not to be received . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Electoral commission to give reminder notice
to candidates .
. .
. 110 Disclosure by third parties Definition for
division .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 111 Third party expenditure for political
activity .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
111
Gifts received by third parties to enable expenditure
for political activity 113
Operation of accounts Requirement for
candidate to operate dedicated account . . . . . .
114 Requirement for group of candidates to
operate dedicated account 115 Gifts
register Register
of gifts
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
116
Access to gifts
register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
117
Queries on contents of
gifts register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
117
Authorised officers under
pt 6
Functions and
powers of
authorised officers etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Miscellaneous Inability to
complete returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
120
Amendment of
returns .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
121
Electronic
lodgement of returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Things taken to
be done
by political party
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
122
Noncompliance
with part
does not
affect election . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Disputed results Disputing local
government elections Local government
election may be disputed under
this part
. .
. .
123
Who
may dispute an election . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Requirements for
an application to
be effective . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Copies of application to be given to elected candidate
and electoral commission . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . 124 Application to court for order
relating to documents etc. . . . . . . . 124
Parties to application . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Page
6
142 143 144
145 146 147
148 149 150
Division 2 151
152 153 154
155 156 157
Part
8 158 159 161
162 163 Part 9
Division 1 165
166 168 Division 2
169 170 171
172 173 Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Contents How application
is to be dealt with by the court . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 125 Application for dismissal of
application disputing election . . . . . . 126
Powers of the court . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Restrictions on particular orders
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Restriction on particular evidence and
inquiries . . . . . . . . . . . . .
128 Copy of final court orders
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Costs . . . . .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 128 Decisions and orders to be final
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
129
Right of electoral commission and
returning officer to have access
to documents . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 129 Appeals Appeal to Court
of Appeal on question of law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
129 Time for appealing . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
129 Electoral commission is a party to
appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
How appeal is dealt with by Court of Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
130
Application
for dismissal of
appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Copy
of final court orders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Right of electoral commission and
returning officer to have access
to documents . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 130 Legal provisions Decisions not
subject to appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 131 Postal vote presumed valid until
contrary proved . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Ballot papers as evidence . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Allegations
of false
or misleading information or
document . . . .
132
Evidentiary provisions .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
132
Enforcement Failure to
vote Notice about failure to vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
133
Payments for failure to vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
134
Failure to vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Corrupt and improper practices
affecting local government elections
False or misleading information
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Bribery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
136 Assisting illegal payments . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Improperly influencing electoral
officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
137 Obstructing persons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
137
Page 7 Not
authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Contents
Not authorised —indicative
only 174 175
176 176A Division 3
177 178 179
180 181 182
183 Division 4 184
185 186 187
188 189 190
191 192 193
194 Division 5 194A
194B 194C 195
196 197 198
Division 6 199
Division 7 Obstructing
electoral officers etc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 138 Forged electoral papers
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
138 Wilful neglect etc. of electoral
officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
138 Confidentiality of information . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Offences relating to electoral
advertising Author of election material must
be named
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 139 Distribution of how-to-vote cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
140
Giving of how-to-vote cards to electoral commission . . . . . . . . . 142
Unauthorised how-to-vote cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Headline to
electoral advertisements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Misleading electors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Offence for group of candidates to
advertise or fundraise
if particular requirements not
complied with . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 146 Offences relating to voting
Leave to vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
147 Canvassing in or near polling
booths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 148 Influencing voting by violence or
intimidation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
148 Party
badges not
to be
worn in
polling booths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Displaying
political statements around polling
booths .
. .
. .
. .
. .
149
Voting if not entitled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
149
Offences about ballot papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
150
Failure to post, fax or deliver documents
for someone
else . . . .
150
Secrecy of voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Breaking seals on parcels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
151
Duty
of witness in signing declaration
envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . .
151
Offences relating to electoral
funding and
financial disclosure Offence about
prohibited donations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
152
Schemes to circumvent prohibition on
particular political donations 152 False or misleading information relating to
determinations . . . . . 153
Offences about returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
154
Records to be
kept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Obtaining information for returns
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 155 Further information for incomplete
returns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Attempts Attempts to
commit offences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Injunctions Page
8
Not authorised —indicative only
200 Part 10 201
201A 202 203
204 205 206
207 208 Part 11
Division 1 210
Division 2 211
Division 3 212
Schedule Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Contents Injunctions . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 156 Miscellaneous Designated
election offences and application of Criminal Code .
158 Proceedings for particular indictable
offences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Local governments responsible for
expenditure incurred by electoral commission . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . 160 Leave to local government employee to
contest local government election . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
160
Inspection of documents .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
161
Persons serving a sentence of imprisonment
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 161 Office of returning officer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
162
Approved forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Regulation-making
power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
162
Transitional provisions Transitional
provision inserted under
Sustainable Planning and
Other Legislation Amendment Act 2012
Cut-off day for compiling voters roll for
quadrennial election for 2012 163
Transitional provision for
Local Government and
Other Legislation Amendment Act
2015 By-elections
and fresh
elections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Transitional
provision for Local Government Electoral (Implementing
Stage 1
of Belcarra) and
Other Legislation Amendment Act
2018 Obligation to repay
particular political donations
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. 164 Dictionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
165
Page
9
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only
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 1
Preliminary [s 1] Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Part 1 Preliminary 1
Short
title This Act may be cited as the
Local Government Electoral Act
2011 .
2 Commencement (1)
Part 12,
division 4,
other than
sections 224, 228
and 236, commences on 1
September 2011. (2) The following provisions commence on a
day to be fixed by proclamation— •
part
12, divisions 2, 3, 11, 12, 14 and 16 •
sections 315 and 342. 3
Purposes of Act The purposes of
this Act are to— (a) ensure the
transparent conduct
of elections of
councillors of Queensland’s local
governments; and (b) ensure and
reinforce integrity
in Queensland’s local
governments, including, for example, by
minimising the risk of corruption in relation to—
(i) the election of councillors;
and (ii) the good
governance of, and by, local government. 4
Definitions The dictionary
in the schedule defines particular words used in this
Act. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
11
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 1 Preliminary [s 5]
5 Particular references in this
Act In a provision of this Act about an
election— (a) a reference to the returning officer
is a reference to the returning officer for the election;
and (b) a reference to an assistant returning
officer is a reference to an assistant returning officer for
the election; and (c) a reference
to an issuing
officer is
a reference to
an issuing officer for the election;
and (d) a reference to polling day is a
reference to polling day for the election; and
(e) a reference to the nomination day is a
reference to the nomination day for the election; and
(f) a reference
to a ballot
paper is
a reference to
a ballot paper for the
election; and (g) a reference to a candidate is a
reference to a candidate for the election; and
(h) a reference to a nominee is a
reference to a nominee for the election; and (i)
a reference to
the mayor or
another councillor is
a reference to the mayor or other
councillor of the local government for which the election is
held; and (j) a reference to a local government is a
reference to the local government for which the election is
held. 6 References to divisions includes
wards (1) In a provision of this Act, a
reference to a division of a local government area
includes a reference to a ward of Brisbane. (2)
In
this section— ward ,
of Brisbane, means
one of 26
divisions of
the local government area
of the Brisbane City Council established for the election of
councillors or a councillor. Page 12
Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 1
Preliminary [s 7] 7
Meaning of conclusion of local
government election (1) The conclusion of the election
of a councillor is— (a) if the
councillor is
elected at
an election of
all councillors of the local
government—the day on which the last
declaration of a poll conducted in the election is
displayed at
the office of
the returning officer
under section
100(2)(a); or (b) if the councillor is elected at a
by-election and— (i) a poll
is conducted—the day
on which the
declaration of the poll is displayed at the
office of the returning officer under section
100(2)(a); or (ii) a
poll is
not conducted—the day
after the
nomination day for the by-election;
or (c) if, because
the number of
candidates nominated
for election is
the same or
less than
the number of
councillors to be elected, the councillor is
elected (other than at a by-election) and—
(i) 1 or
more polls
are conducted in
the local government area—the
day on which
the last declaration of
a poll conducted
in the local
government area
is displayed at
the office of
the returning officer under section
100(2)(a); or (ii) no
poll is
conducted in
the local government area—6p.m. on
the day that a poll would otherwise have been
required to be conducted under this Act. (2)
In
this section— declaration , of a poll,
means the declaration by the electoral commission of
the result of the poll under section 100(1). Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 13
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 2 Administration [s 8]
Part
2 Administration Division 1
Electoral commission 8
Additional functions and powers of electoral
commission For the purpose
of this Act,
the functions of
the electoral commission include
conducting quadrennial elections, by-elections or
fresh elections for local governments. Division 2
Electoral officers for local
government elections 9
Returning officers (1)
The returning officer
for an election
is responsible for
the proper conduct of the election.
(2) The electoral
commission may
appoint a
person as
the returning officer for an
election. (3) A person
must not
be appointed under
subsection (2) if
the person is— (a)
a
minor; or (b) a member of a political party;
or (c) the chief executive officer of the
local government for which the election is to be
held. (4) Despite subsection
(3)(c), the electoral commission may
appoint the chief executive officer of the
local government as the returning officer if—
(a) the chief executive officer is not a
member of a political party; and (b)
the
electoral commission considers the chief executive
officer is the only person with experience
in conducting Page 14 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 2
Administration [s 10] elections who is
reasonably available to be appointed as the returning
officer. (5) The returning officer must comply with
a direction given by the electoral
commission for
the proper conduct
of the election.
Not authorised —indicative only
10 Assistant returning officers
(1) An assistant
returning officer
is responsible for
helping the
returning officer
in performing the
returning officer’s
responsibilities under this Act.
(2) The electoral
commission may
appoint a
person as
an assistant returning officer for an
election. (3) A person
must not
be appointed under
subsection (2) if
the person is— (a)
a
minor; or (b) a member of a political party.
(4) The electoral
commission may
appoint 1
or more assistant
returning officers for an election.
11 Presiding officers (1)
A
presiding officer at a polling booth is responsible for the
proper conduct of a poll at the polling
booth and for carrying out the
other duties
for an election
that are
required by
the returning officer. (2)
The
returning officer— (a) may be presiding officer at a polling
booth; and (b) must appoint
a person as
presiding officer
at each polling booth
other than the booth at which the returning officer is the
presiding officer. (3) If a person can not act as presiding
officer at a polling booth, the
returning officer,
or someone else
with the
returning officer’s
approval, may
appoint another
person as
presiding officer at the
booth while the person can not act. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 15
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 2
Administration [s 12] (4)
An appointment under
subsection (2) or
(3) must be
in the approved
form. Not authorised —indicative
only 12 Issuing
officers (1) An issuing
officer is responsible for— (a)
giving ballot
papers and
declaration envelopes
to electors; and (b)
performing the
other duties
for an election
that are
required by the returning officer.
(2) An issuing
officer must
be a member
of the staff
of the electoral
commission mentioned
in the Electoral
Act 1992 ,
section 29. 13
Membership of a political party ends
particular appointments (1)
A person’s appointment as
a returning officer
or assistant returning
officer ends if the person becomes a member of a
political party. (2)
Subsection (1) does
not limit the
ways in
which a
person’s appointment as
a returning officer
or assistant returning
officer may end. 14
Obligation to notify of membership of a
political party A returning officer
or assistant returning
officer must
immediately notify
the electoral commission if
the officer becomes a member
of a political party, unless the person has a reasonable
excuse. Maximum penalty—40 penalty units.
15 Returning officer may act through
other officers If— (a) the returning
officer may, under this Act, do a thing; and Page 16
Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 2
Administration [s 16] (b)
the returning officer
authorises an
assistant returning
officer, presiding
officer or
issuing officer
to do the
thing; and (c)
the assistant returning
officer, presiding
officer or
issuing officer does the thing;
the
thing is taken to have been done by the returning officer.
Examples— 1
For an election,
if the returning
officer authorises an
assistant returning
officer to
conduct the
election in
a division, and
the assistant returning officer does so,
the returning officer is taken to have conducted
the election in the division. 2
For an election,
if the returning
officer authorises an
assistant returning
officer to carry out the functions of the returning officer
under section 95, and the assistant
returning officer carries out the functions, the
returning officer is taken to have carried out the
functions. 3
Under section 72, declaration envelopes are
to be posted or given to the returning officer. For an
election, the returning officer could authorise an
issuing officer to receive declaration envelopes, to
remove the declaration envelopes containing
the ballot papers from the return address envelopes and place
the declaration envelopes in a ballot
box. 16 Assistant returning officer may act
through other officers If— (a)
an
assistant returning officer may, under this Act, do a
thing; and (b)
the assistant returning
officer authorises a
presiding officer or an
issuing officer to do the thing; and (c)
the
presiding officer or the issuing officer does the thing;
the
thing is taken to have been done by the assistant returning
officer. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 17
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 3 Voters rolls and register of special
postal voters [s 17] Part 3
Voters rolls and register of
special postal voters Division 1
Voters rolls 17
Returning officer must compile voters
roll (1) The returning officer for an election
must compile a roll of persons entitled to vote at the
election (the voters roll ).
(2) The voters
roll must
consist of
the persons enrolled
on an electoral roll
for an electoral district, or a part of an electoral
district, included— (a)
for
an election for all of a local government’s area—in
the
area; or (b) for an
election for
a division of
a local government’s area—in the
division. (3) An electoral registrar under
the Electoral Act 1992 must give
the returning officer
the assistance the
officer reasonably requires to
compile a voters roll for an election. 18
When
voters roll must be compiled (1)
A
voters roll for a quadrennial election or fresh election
must be compiled at least 5 days, but not more
than 7 days, after the publication in a newspaper, under
section 25(1), of notice of the day of the
election. (2) However, a regulation may fix a
different day for compiling the voters roll
for a particular election. (3) A
voters roll
for a by-election must
be compiled at
least 5
days, but
not more than
7 days, after
the publication in
a newspaper, under
section 24(3), of
notice of
the day of
the by-election. Page 18
Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 3 Voters
rolls and register of special postal voters [s 19]
19 Requirements of voters roll
(1) A voters roll for an election
must— (a) show the
names of
all persons entitled
to vote at
the election; and (b)
be
in the form of the electoral roll used for elections of
the
Legislative Assembly. (2) The
voters roll
must not
include an
elector’s address
that, under the
Electoral Act
1992 , is excluded
from the publicly available part of an electoral roll.
20 Inspection of voters roll
(1) The electoral commission must ensure
the most recent version of all voters rolls is available for
inspection by members of the public at the
commission’s public office. (2)
The electoral commission may
also make
available, for
inspection by any person, a copy of the most
recent version of a voters roll
at any place
that the
commission considers
appropriate. 21
Supply of voters roll to candidates
(1) If a poll is to be conducted in an
election, the returning officer must give a copy
of the voters roll to each candidate as soon as practicable
after the nomination day. (2) The electoral
commission may decide the format in which the voters roll is
given to the candidates and direct the returning
officer to give the voters roll that
format. Division 2 Register of
special postal voters 21A Electoral
commission to keep register of special postal voters
(1) The electoral commission must keep, or
arrange to be kept, a register of special postal
voters. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
19
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
22] (2) The electoral commissioner must, not
less than 18 months but not more
than 4
years after
the result of
a poll for
a quadrennial election
is declared, review
the continuing eligibility of a
person to cast a vote as a special postal voter.
(3) In conducting the review, the
electoral commissioner must— (a)
require each relevant elector to advise, in
the approved form, whether the elector still lives at the
address shown on the voters roll; and (b)
do a random
check of
approved forms
given to
the electoral commission under
paragraph (a)
to decide whether the
signature on each approved form checked is the same as the
signature on the elector’s application to be a special
postal voter mentioned in section 68(5A). (4)
In
this section— relevant elector means an elector
whose name is included in the register of special postal voters
because of a circumstance mentioned in section 68(5A)(a)(i) or
(ii). Part 4 Local government
elections Division 1 Local government
elections 22 Types of elections (1)
An
election of the mayor of a local government is an election
for
all of the local government’s area. (2)
A
quadrennial or fresh election for a councillor (other than
the mayor) of a local government is—
(a) if the local government’s area does
not have divisions— an election for all of the area; or
(b) if the local government’s area has
divisions—an election for each division of the area.
Page
20 Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 23] (3)
A
by-election to fill a vacancy in the office of a councillor
(other than the mayor) of a local government
is an election for its area, or the division of its area, for
which the councillor was elected. 23
Date
of quadrennial elections (1) A quadrennial
election must be held in, and every fourth year after,
2012. (2) A quadrennial election must be held on
the last Saturday in March. (3)
However, a
regulation may
fix a different
day for a
quadrennial election for a particular
year. 24 Date of by-elections
(1) A by-election to fill a vacancy in the
office of a councillor is to be held on the day fixed by the
returning officer. (2) The day
fixed must
be within 12
weeks after
the vacancy happens.
(3) As soon
as practicable after
fixing the
day for holding
a by-election, the returning officer
must— (a) publish, in a newspaper circulating
generally in the local government area and in the other ways
that the officer may consider appropriate, notice of—
(i) the day fixed; and (ii)
the cut-off day
for the voters
roll for
the by-election under section 18(3);
and (b) take the
steps required
by this Act
for holding the
by-election. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 21
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
25] Division 2 Candidates for
local government elections Subdivision
1 Nominations of candidates
25 Calling for nominations
(1) The returning officer must publish
notice of an election in a newspaper circulating generally in the
local government area, or division
of the local
government area,
for which the
election is to be held. (2)
The
notice must— (a) state a day as a nomination
day— (i) not less
than 8,
or more than
18, days after
the publication of the notice; and
(ii) not less than
18, or more than 42, days before the day on which the
election is to be held; and (b)
state the
nominations must
be given to
the returning officer;
and (c) invite nominations of
candidates. (3) The place of nomination must
be— (a) the office of the returning officer;
or (b) a place
in the local
government’s area
convenient generally to
persons in the area. 26 Who may be nominated
(1) A person
may be nominated
as a candidate, or
for appointment, as a councillor only if
the person is qualified to be a councillor under the—
(a) for a councillor of the Brisbane City
Council— City of
Brisbane Act 2010 , section 152;
or Page 22 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 27] (b)
for a councillor of
another local
government— Local
Government Act 2009 , section
152. (2) However, a
person who
is a candidate
for election as
a member of an Australian Parliament,
can not be nominated for election or appointment as a
councillor until— (a) for an election under the
Electoral Act
1992 —the day
the electoral commission is
notified, under
section 131(1) of that Act, of the candidate
elected for the electoral district for which the person
is a candidate; or (b) for an election
under the Commonwealth Electoral Act
1918 (Cwlth)—
(i) the day the result of the election and
the candidates elected are declared under section 283 of
that Act; or (ii) the day the
candidate elected for the division for which the person
is a candidate is declared under section 284 of
that Act. (3) To remove
any doubt, it
is declared that,
a person is
not disqualified from
being nominated
as a candidate, or
for appointment, as
a councillor only
because the
person is
a member of the Legislative Assembly or
a local government employee. Example—
A
person who is a member of the Legislative Assembly may
nominate as a candidate for election as a councillor
but must resign on becoming a
candidate. 27 Making and certification of
nomination (1) A person
who wishes to
be a candidate
in an election
may only be nominated by—
(a) the registered officer of a registered
political party that has endorsed the person as a candidate
for the election; or Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
23
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
27] (b) at least
6 electors for
the local government area,
or division of
the local government area,
for which the
election is to be held. (2)
A
nomination must— (a) be in the approved form; and
(b) contain the following—
(i) the candidate’s name, address and
occupation; (ii) a signed
statement by the candidate consenting to the
nomination; (iii) if subsection
(1)(a) applies—a signed statement by the
registered political
party’s registered officer
that
the party has endorsed the candidate; and (c)
be
given to the returning officer after the nominations
are invited for
the election but
before noon
on the nomination
day. (3) If the returning officer is satisfied
a person has been properly nominated, the returning officer
must— (a) as soon
as practicable, certify
the nomination in
the approved form; and (b)
give
a copy of the certificate to the person. (4)
The
certificate must state the time, day and place proposed for
a draw, if
necessary, for
the order of
listing of
candidates’ names on the
ballot paper. (5) For subsection
(3), a person is
properly nominated
for an election
if— (a) subsection (2) has been complied with,
or substantially complied with apart from a mere formal
defect or error in the nomination; and (b)
section 29(2) does not apply to the
nomination; and (c) section 39 has been complied with;
and (d) the nomination has not been
withdrawn. Page 24 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 28] (6)
In deciding whether
a person is
properly nominated
for an election, the
returning officer is not required to look beyond—
(a) the form of nomination and payment of
the deposit; and (b) the voters roll; and
(c) documentary evidence
produced by
the nominee or
nominator that, at the time the voters roll
is compiled for the election— (i)
the
nominator is an elector for the election or the registered
officer of a registered political party; or (ii)
the
nominee is, under the Electoral Act
1992 , an
elector for
an electoral district,
or part of
an electoral district,
included in
the local government’s
area. (7) If a nomination is wrongly certified
by the returning officer, the certification is of no
effect. 28 Grounds for deciding a person is not
properly nominated (1) The returning
officer may
decide that
a person who
has changed his
or her name
is not properly
nominated as
a candidate in an election because the
nomination name— (a) is a party name; or
(b) so nearly resembles a party name that
it is likely to be confused with or mistaken for the party
name; or (c) includes the word ‘independent’;
or (d) is a public body name; or
(e) so nearly resembles a public body name
that it is likely to be confused
with or
mistaken for
the public body
name; or (f)
is
obscene or offensive. (2) The returning
officer may also decide that a person who has changed
his or her
name is
not properly nominated
as a candidate in an
election if the returning officer considers the name could cause
confusion. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
28] Example of subsection (2)—
If a
person’s name is ‘Informal’, the returning officer may consider
that the name could cause confusion to
electors. (3) If the returning officer decides under
this section that a person is not properly nominated as a
candidate in an election, the returning
officer must give the person a notice stating— (a)
the
decision; and (b) the reasons for the decision;
and (c) the person’s right to apply for an
injunction. Note— For a person’s
right to apply for an injunction, see section 200.
(4) In this section— nomination
name means the name proposed by a candidate
to be used on
a ballot paper
as the candidate’s name
under section
55(2). parliamentary party means an
organisation— (a) whose object
or activity, or
1 of whose
objects or
activities, is
the promotion of
the election to
an Australian parliament of
a candidate or
candidates endorsed by it
or by a body or organisation of which it forms a part;
and (b) of which at least 1 member is a member
of an Australian parliament. party
name means the name, or an abbreviation or
acronym of the name of— (a)
a
parliamentary party; or (b) a political
party; or (c) an organisation or group whose object
or activity, or 1 of whose objects
or activities, is
the promotion of
the election of a candidate or candidates
endorsed by it or by a body or organisation of which it forms
a part to— (i) an Australian parliament; or
Page
26 Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 29] (ii)
an
office of councillor of a local government. public
body name
means the
name, or
an abbreviation or
acronym of the name, of a prominent public
body. 29 Effect of multiple nominations
(1) A person can not, at the same time, be
a candidate for election as— (a)
mayor of a local government and as another
councillor of the same local government; or
(b) a councillor of
a local government for
more than
1 division of the local government’s
area. (2) If, at noon on the nomination day, a
person is nominated as a candidate in
contravention of
subsection (1), each
of the nominations is
of no effect. 30 Withdrawal of consent to
nomination (1) A person
nominated as
a candidate in
an election may
withdraw the person’s agreement to the
nomination by signed notice given
to the returning
officer before
noon on
the nomination day. (2)
If a
person acts under subsection (1)— (a)
the
nomination is of no effect; and (b)
the
person’s deposit must be refunded to the person who
paid
the deposit. 32 Announcement of nominations
(1) As soon as practicable after the
returning officer has certified the
nomination of
a person for
an election under
section 27(3)(a), the returning officer must
display a copy of the nomination in a conspicuous position at
the office of the returning officer. Current as at
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[s
33] (2) The display of a copy of the
nomination must continue until the conclusion
of the election. 33 Death of candidate If a person
nominated as a candidate in an election dies before
noon
on the nomination day— (a) the nomination
is of no effect; and (b) the person’s
deposit must be refunded to— (i)
if
the deposit was paid by someone other than the person—the other
person; or (ii) otherwise—the
person’s personal representative. 34
Procedure if number of candidates not more
than number required (1)
If the number
of candidates properly
nominated for
an election is only equal to the number
required to be elected— (a) the nominees are
taken to have been elected; and (b)
the
returning officer must, as soon as practicable after
the nomination day,
publish a
notice in
the approved form
in a newspaper
circulating generally
in the local
government area,
or division of
the local government area,
for which the
election was
to be held,
that the
nominees are taken to have been
elected. (2) If— (a)
no-one is nominated as a candidate in an
election; or (b) the number
of candidates nominated
is less than
the number required to be elected;
the
proceedings for the election must start again. (3)
However, if
proceedings for
the election have
previously started
again under
subsection (2), the
Governor in
Council may,
by gazette notice,
appoint as
councillors of
the local Page 28
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 35] government, the
number of
persons necessary
to constitute fully the local
government. (4) Each person appointed under subsection
(3) must be qualified to be elected as a councillor of the
local government for the local government area,
or division of
the local government area, for which
the election was to be held. (5)
Persons appointed under subsection (3) are
taken to have been properly elected
as councillors of
the local government for
which they are appointed.
(6) If proceedings for
an election are
started again
under subsection
(2)— (a) the deposits of the candidates must be
refunded to the persons who paid the deposits; and
(b) the electoral commission must, by
gazette notice, fix a new polling day for the
election. 35 Procedure if number of candidates
exceeds number required (1)
If the number
of candidates properly
nominated for
an election exceeds
the number required
to be elected,
a poll must be
conducted under this part. (2) The returning
officer must give public notice that a poll will
be
conducted. (3) The notice must— (a)
be
in the approved form; and (b) state—
(i) the day the poll will be conducted;
and (ii) the names of all
candidates properly nominated for election in the
order decided under section 57; and (iii)
the location of
all ordinary polling
booths to
be used for taking the ballot in the
poll; and (iv) that
the ordinary voting
hours are
from 8a.m.
to 6p.m; and Current as at
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[s
36] (c) be displayed in a conspicuous position
at the office of the returning officer; and
(d) be published in a newspaper
circulating generally in the local
government area,
or division of
the local government area,
for which the poll will be conducted. (4)
Display of a notice under subsection (3)(c)
must— (a) start as soon as practicable after
noon on the nomination day; and (b)
continue until the close of the poll.
36 Procedure on death of candidate when
poll to be conducted (1)
If a
poll is to be conducted and a candidate dies after noon on
the nomination day
but before the
polling day
for an election—
(a) for a
candidate for
mayor—the proceedings for
the election of the mayor must start
again; and (b) for a candidate for councillor (other
than mayor) if the local government’s area is undivided—the
proceedings for the election of the councillors must
start again; and (c) for a candidate for councillor (other
than mayor) for a division of a local government’s area—the
proceedings for the election of councillors for the
division must start again. (2)
Also, the Minister may, by gazette notice,
direct that— (a) if subsection
(1)(a) applies—all proceedings for
the election of
councillors of
the local government start
again; or (b)
if
subsection (1)(b) applies—proceedings for holding an
election of
the mayor of
the local government start
again; or (c)
if
subsection (1)(c) applies— Page 30 Current as at
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 37] (i)
proceedings for holding an election of the
mayor of the local government start again; and
(ii) proceedings for
the election of councillors for the other divisions
of the local government start again. (3)
The
deceased candidate’s deposit must be refunded to—
(a) if the
deposit was
paid by
someone other
than the
candidate—the other person; or
(b) otherwise—the candidate’s personal
representative. (4) The deposits
of other candidates must
be refunded to
the persons who paid the deposits.
(5) If proceedings for an election are
started again, the electoral commission must,
by gazette notice, fix a new polling day for the
election. 37 If successful candidate dies
If a
candidate who is successful at an election dies before the
final result
of the poll
is declared, the
candidate must
be declared elected
to the office
for which the
person was
a candidate. Note—
The
effect of this section would be that a new vacancy exists in
the office of the councillor.
38 Extension of times (1)
This
section applies if a returning officer publishes—
(a) notice of a nomination day under
section 25; or (b) notice of
the day a
poll will
be conducted under
section 35. (2)
The
electoral commission may, by gazette notice, fix a later
day
as the nomination day or polling day if the day is likely to
be
affected by an emergency. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
39] (3) If the
electoral commission fixes
a later day
under subsection (2),
the returning officer— (a) may give any
necessary directions to candidates, and to electors, about
the procedures to be followed; and (b)
must publish
a notice detailing
the directions in
a newspaper circulating generally in the
local government area, or division of the local government
area, for which the election is to be held.
Subdivision 2 Deposits
accompanying nomination 39 Deposit to
accompany nomination (1) At
the same time
as a nomination is
given to
the returning officer
under section
27, the nominee, or
another person
on behalf of the nominee, must deposit
$250 with the returning officer. (2)
The
deposit must be paid— (a) in cash;
or (b) by a cheque drawn by a financial
institution; or (c) by electronic funds transfer.
40 Disposal of deposits generally
(1) As soon
as practicable after
the conclusion of
an election, each candidate’s
deposit must be refunded to the person who paid the deposit
if— (a) the candidate is elected; or
(b) if the
system of
voting at
the election is
optional-preferential voting—the number
of formal first-preference
votes received by the candidate is more than 4% of the
total number of formal first-preference votes cast in
the election; or Page 32 Current as at
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 41] (c)
if the system
of voting at
the election is
first-past-the-post voting—the number
of formal votes
received by the candidate is more than 4% of
the total number of formal votes cast in the
election. (2) If a deposit is to be refunded to a
person, it may be refunded to someone else
with the written authority of the person. (3)
All other candidates’ deposits
become the
property of
the State when
the outcome of
the election is
decided unless
section 30, 33 or 36 applies.
Subdivision 3 Recording of
membership and agents for group of candidates
41 Record of membership in group of
candidates (1) This section applies to a group of
candidates in an election. (2) The group must
give a record of the membership of the group to the returning
officer after the candidates in the group are nominated for
the election but before noon on the last day for
the
receipt of nominations for candidates in the election.
(3) The record must— (a)
be
in the approved form; and (b) state the name
of the group; and (c) state the names of the candidates who
are the members of the group; and (d)
be signed by
each of
the candidates who
are the members of the
group. (4) As soon as practicable after the
returning officer receives the record, the
returning officer must ensure a copy of the record
is
displayed at the office of the returning officer.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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[s
42] 42 Appointment of agent for group of
candidates (1) A group of candidates in an election
must appoint an adult as an agent for the group for the
election. (2) The instrument appointing the agent
must— (a) be in the approved form; and
(b) state the name and address of the
person appointed as agent; and (c)
be signed by
each of
the candidates who
are the members of the
group; and (d) be signed by the person appointed as
agent, and include or be accompanied by— (i)
the
person’s signed agreement to being appointed as the group’s
agent; and (ii) the person’s
signed declaration that the person is eligible to be
appointed as the group’s agent. (3)
A
copy of the instrument appointing the agent must be given
to
the returning officer at the same time the record is given
to the returning officer under section
41. 43 Register of group agents
(1) The returning
officer must
keep a
register (the
register of
group agents
) that records
the name and
address of
each person who is
appointed as the agent for a group of candidates
in
an election. (2) The appointment of an agent for a
group of candidates— (a) is not effective
under this Act until the appointment has been recorded in
the register of group agents; and (b)
ceases to
be effective when
the person’s name
is removed from the register.
(3) The name of a person may be removed
from the register only if— Page 34
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 44] (a)
the
person gives the returning officer a written notice,
signed by the person, stating that he or she
has resigned the appointment as agent; or
(b) the group
of candidates gives
the returning officer
a written notice,
signed by
all members of
the group, stating
that the
person has
ceased to
be the group’s
agent. (4)
If
the name of a person is removed from the register under
subsection (3), the group of candidates may,
under section 42, appoint another agent. (5)
If
no agent is currently recorded for a group of candidates in
the register of
group agents,
all obligations under
this Act
applying to an agent (including liability
for any offence) apply to each
member of
the group of
candidates as
if each candidate was
the agent for the group. Division 3 Arrangements for
local government elections Subdivision
1 Polls by ballots 44
Poll
by ballot A poll must be conducted by ballot taken
under this part. 45 Direction that poll be conducted by
postal ballot (1) A local government may apply to the
Minister for a poll to be conducted by
postal ballot
if the local
government’s area
includes a large rural sector, large remote
areas or extensive island areas. (2)
The application must
be made before
1 July in
the year preceding a
quadrennial election or a later day approved by the
Minister. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
46] (3) The Minister
must decide
to approve or
not to approve
the application. (4)
The
approval may be given for— (a) all the local
government’s area; or (b) 1 or more
divisions of its area; or (c) a part of its
area marked on a map. (5) If the approval
is given for a part of a local government’s area,
the
local government must— (a) ensure that the
public may inspect the relevant map— (i)
at
the local government’s public office; and (ii)
on
the local government’s website; and (b)
publish details
of the approval
in a newspaper
circulating generally
in the part
of the local
government’s area. (6)
Decisions of the Minister under subsection
(3) are not subject to appeal. Subdivision
2 Polling booths 46
Kinds
of polling booths (1) There are 3 kinds of polling
booths— (a) ordinary polling booths; and
(b) mobile polling booths; and
(c) pre-polling booths.
(2) An ordinary polling
booth is a building or other structure, or
a
part of a building or other structure, that the returning
officer for an election arranges to be available on
polling day for the election to enable electors in general to
vote. (3) A mobile polling
booth is— Page 36 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 47] (a)
all
or part of an institution made available as a mobile
polling booth under section 49(1); or
(b) all or part of a place made available
as a mobile polling booth under section 49(2).
(4) A pre-polling
booth means a place arranged under section
50 as a polling booth for electors to cast a
pre-poll vote. 47 Polling booths—general
(1) The returning officer for an
election— (a) may arrange
for a polling
booth within
or outside the
local government area,
or division of
the local government area,
to be used for the election; and (b)
may
arrange for 2 or more polling booths at any place if
the number of
electors likely
to vote at
the place is
greater than could conveniently vote in 1
booth at the place; and (c)
must ensure
that each
polling booth
is provided with
enough ballot
boxes, ballot
papers and
materials to
enable electors to mark the ballot
papers. (2) A place on or from which liquor may
lawfully be sold can not be used as a polling booth.
(3) However, a civic or cultural centre,
community hall or similar place under a local government’s
control, may be used as a polling booth if— (a)
the
floor area for taking the ballot is designated in the
polling notice; and (b)
the
local government ensures that no liquor will be sold
or
supplied in that area during the taking of the ballot.
(4) The returning officer may arrange for
all polling booths, or only particular polling booths, for an
election to be used for any other election conducted at the
same time for the one local government
area. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
48] 48 Provision of ordinary polling
booths (1) For taking a ballot in an election,
the returning officer must arrange for places, or parts of
places, to be used on polling day as
ordinary polling
booths to
enable electors
in general to
vote. (2)
The
returning officer may— (a) less
than 3
days before
polling day,
arrange for
an ordinary polling booth to be used;
or (b) less than 6 days before polling day,
cancel arrangements for the use of an ordinary polling
booth; only if it is necessary because of
circumstances beyond the returning officer’s control.
(3) If, after publication of the polling
notice, the returning officer arranges for the
use of an ordinary polling booth, the officer must also
publish notice— (a) of the location of the booth;
and (b) that the
ordinary voting
hours of
the booth are
from 8a.m. to
6p.m. (4) If the returning officer cancels
arrangements for the use of an ordinary polling
booth, the officer must also publish notice of the
cancellation. (5) The notice
under subsection
(3) or (4) is to be given in the
way
the returning officer considers is the best way to inform
electors generally. 49
Declaration of mobile polling booths
(1) If the returning officer is satisfied
patients or residents of an institution
should be able to vote at the institution in a poll, the
returning officer may arrange for all or
part of the institution to be available as a mobile polling
booth to enable the patients or residents to
vote there in the poll. (2) If
the returning officer
is satisfied a
part of
the local government area
or division of the local government area does not
have enough
electors to
justify the
use of an
ordinary Page 38
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 49] Not
authorised —indicative only
polling booth, the returning officer may
arrange for any place in the part to be available as a
mobile polling booth to enable electors in the
part to vote in the poll. (3) If
the returning officer
acts under
subsection (1) or
(2), the
officer must— (a)
fix
the times, during the period starting 11 days before
the
polling day and ending at 6p.m. on the polling day,
when
the mobile polling booth may be used for voting;
and (b) publish a notice
in a newspaper circulating generally in the relevant
part of the local government area— (i)
declaring all or part of the institution or
the place as a mobile polling booth for the election;
and (ii) stating the
times at which votes may be cast at the booth.
(4) If the returning officer arranges a
place to be available as a mobile polling
booth under
subsection (2), the
returning officer
may change the
arrangements made
for the mobile
polling booth under subsection (3) at any
time. (5) If the
arrangements are
changed under
subsection (4), the
returning officer
must take
the steps that
are practical and
appropriate to give public notice of the
changed arrangements. (6) The returning
officer must give written notice to candidates of
the
declaration of the mobile polling booth, the times at which
votes may
be cast at
the booth, and
any change to
the arrangements under subsection
(4). (7) On the declaration of a mobile polling
booth, the patients or residents of
the institution who
are electors, or
electors resident in the
part of the local government area in which the mobile
polling booth
is situated, may
vote at
the booth during—
(a) the times
stated for
the booth in
the notice published
under subsection (3)(b); or
(b) if the times have been changed under
subsection (4)— the changed times. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 39
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[s
50] 50 Declaration of pre-polling
booths (1) The returning officer must arrange at
least 1 of the following places as a polling booth for an
election to enable electors to cast a pre-poll
vote— (a) the public office, or a part of the
public office, of the local government for which the
election is to be held; (b) another office
used by the local government to receive rate
payments; (c) another convenient place in the local
government’s area. (2) Also, the returning officer
must— (a) fix the times, during the period
starting 14 days before the polling
day and ending
at 6p.m. on
the day immediately
before polling day, when the polling booth may be used for
voting; and (b) publish a notice in a newspaper
circulating generally in the local government’s area—
(i) declaring the
place as
a polling booth
for the election to
enable electors to cast a pre-poll vote; and
(ii) stating the
times at which votes may be cast at the booth.
(3) The returning officer may also publish
the notice in any other way the returning officer considers
appropriate. (4) The returning officer must give
written notice to candidates of the
declaration of
the polling booth
and the times
at which votes may be
cast at the booth. 51 Duty of person in charge of
institution (1) If the returning officer arranges for
all or part of an institution to be used as an
ordinary polling booth for an election, the person
in charge of
the institution must
allow electors
and issuing officers to have access to the
booth whenever votes may be cast at the booth.
Page
40 Current as at [Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 52] (2)
If
the returning officer declares all or part of an institution as
a mobile polling booth for an election, the
person in charge of the institution must
allow patients
or residents of
the institution and
issuing officers
to have access
to the booth
whenever votes may be cast at the
booth. Not authorised —indicative only
52 Privacy for electors casting votes at
polling booths The returning officer must ensure that each
polling booth for an election is provided with enough voting
compartments, or other suitable facilities, to allow the
casting of votes in private. 53
Adjournment of poll (1)
A
returning officer may adjourn the poll at a polling booth if
the
taking of the poll is, or is likely to be, interrupted by an
emergency. (2)
The
presiding officer for a polling booth may adjourn the poll
at
the polling booth if the taking of the poll is, or is likely
to be, interrupted by an emergency.
(3) If a poll is adjourned under
subsection (1) or (2), the returning officer must fix
a day (no later than 34 days after the day on which
the poll is
adjourned) for
conducting the
adjourned poll.
(4) The returning officer must publish
notice of the day fixed— (a) in a newspaper
circulating generally in the relevant part of the local
government area; and (b) in
other ways
the returning officer
considers appropriate. Subdivision
3 Ballot boxes, ballot papers and
other documents 54
Ballot boxes generally (1)
A
ballot box used in a poll must— Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 41
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[s
55] (a) have an opening of a size adequate to
allow folded ballot papers and declaration envelopes to be put
in the box; and (b) be under the
scrutiny and effective control of an issuing officer.
(2) Issuing officers, candidates and
scrutineers for the poll, may inspect
a ballot box
before the
box is locked
or sealed for
receipt of ballot papers.
55 Ballot papers (1AA)
The
electoral commission must ensure a sufficient number of
ballot papers
complying with
subsection (1) are
printed and
available to
the returning officer
for distribution under
section 58. (1)
A
ballot paper, other than a completed ballot paper printed
for an electronically assisted vote,
must— (a) be of material that, when folded, the
vote recorded on it is effectively concealed; and
(b) be attached to a butt that—
(i) is not part of the ballot paper;
and (ii) is perforated to
allow the ballot paper to be easily detached from
the butt; and (iii) is
numbered in
regular arithmetical sequence,
starting with
the numeral 1
and proceeding by
intervals of one whole numeral, so that each
butt for the local
government area,
or division of
the local government area,
for which the
poll is
conducted has a unique number; and
(c) show the
name of
each candidate
as required by
subsection (2); and (d)
if
the names of 2 or more candidates are so similar as to
be likely to
cause confusion
to electors—contain an
appropriate description or
addition, in
the returning officer’s
opinion, to distinguish the persons’ names; and Page 42
Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 56] (e)
if a candidate
endorsed by
a political party
was nominated under
section 27(1)(a)—contain,
printed adjacent to the
candidate’s name— (i) if the
register of
political parties
includes an
abbreviation of
the party’s name—the
party’s abbreviated
name; or (ii) otherwise—the party’s
full name
included in
the register; and (f)
if a
candidate is a member of a group of candidates— contain,
printed adjacent
to the candidate’s name,
the name of the group. (2)
The
name of a candidate must be shown on a ballot paper to
which subsection (1) applies—
(a) only once by showing first the surname
followed by the given name or names of the candidate;
and (b) in the order decided under section
57. (2A) A completed
ballot paper printed for an electronically assisted
vote must
be of a
size or
format that
enables the
elector’s electronically
assisted vote to be accurately determined. (3)
A
ballot paper must not contain the name of anyone who is
not
a candidate. 56 Ballot papers for separate
polls (1) This section applies if a poll for
election of mayor of a local government is
to be conducted
when a
poll for
election of
another councillor of the local government
is conducted. (2) The returning officer may decide to
use separate ballot papers or combined ballot papers for the
poll. 57 Order of candidates’ names on ballot
papers (1) The order
the names of
candidates in
an election are
to be listed
on ballot papers
and polling notices
is to be
decided under this
section. Current as at [Not applicable]
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[s
58] (2) The order must be decided by the
returning officer as soon as practicable
after noon on the nomination day. (3)
The
returning officer must, in the presence of 2 witnesses—
(a) write the name of each candidate on a
separate sheet of paper; and (b)
ensure that
each piece
of paper is
of the same
kind, shape, size and
colour; and (c) put each separate piece of paper in a
separate envelope and, if it is necessary to fold the piece of
paper to make it fit in
the envelope, fold
each piece
of paper in
the same way to make each the same size
and thickness; and (d) ensure that
each envelope
is opaque and
of the same
kind, shape, size and colour; and
(e) after each piece of paper has been
placed in an envelope, seal the envelope; and
(f) put all
the envelopes in
a container and
shuffle them;
and (g) draw out the
envelopes, 1 at a time; and (h)
as
each envelope is drawn out, open it and note the name
of the candidate
shown on
the piece of
paper in
the envelope. (4)
The
order in which the names are noted is the order in which
the
names are to appear on the ballot paper and polling notice.
(5) The returning
officer must
allow any
candidate, or
the representative of a candidate, to be
present when the order of candidates’ names is decided.
58 Distribution of ballot papers and
voters roll (1) The returning officer must ensure an
adequate number of the following are available at polling
booths for an election— (a) ballot
papers; (b) certified copies
of the voters
roll for
each electoral
district (as at the cut-off day for the
voters rolls). Page 44 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 58] Not
authorised —indicative only
(2) The returning
officer must
prepare a
delivery note,
in the approved form,
in triplicate for each parcel of ballot papers supplied
by the returning
officer to
presiding officers
at polling booths. (3)
The
approved form must— (a) show details
of the number
of ballot papers
supplied; and
(b) show the range of numbers of the
ballot papers; and (c) include a
form of
acknowledgement of
receipt of
the ballot papers. (4)
Two
copies of the delivery note must be included in the parcel
of
ballot papers. (5) As soon
as practicable after
a presiding officer
receives a
parcel of ballot papers, the officer
must— (a) check the
contents against
the details shown
in the delivery note;
and (b) complete the particulars prescribed by
the delivery note; and (c) sign
the form of
acknowledgement included
in the delivery
note. (6) If there
is a discrepancy between
the details shown
in the delivery
note and
the contents of
the parcel, the
presiding officer must
cause a countercheck to be made by— (a)
if
an issuing officer is available—the issuing officer; or
(b) if an
issuing officer
is not available—a responsible person.
(7) A discrepancy confirmed by a
countercheck must be noted in the form of
acknowledgement and the form must be signed by the presiding
officer and person who made the countercheck. (8)
The
presiding officer must return 1 copy of the delivery note
to the returning
officer and
retain the
other copy
of the delivery note
until it is given to the returning officer with the
sealed parcels of ballot papers under
section 92. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
45
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 59] Subdivision
4 Scrutineers Not
authorised —indicative
only 59 Scrutineers (1)
Each candidate
for an election
may, by
notice given
to the returning
officer for the election in the approved form, appoint
1 or
more adults as scrutineers for the candidate. (2)
Scrutineers are entitled to be present in
each polling booth at times when electors are allowed to
vote at the booth. (3) Scrutineers are also entitled to be
present— (a) beforehand at each polling booth
to— (i) inspect ballot boxes; and
(ii) observe the
examination of declaration envelopes received
before 6p.m.
the day before
the polling day for the
election; and (b) afterwards at
each polling
booth and
other places
to observe the
examination of
declaration envelopes, the
printing of
completed ballot
papers for
electronically assisted votes
and the counting of votes; and (c)
at a
place to observe any part of a procedure for making
an
electronically assisted vote. (4)
For subsections (2) and
(3), the
number of
scrutineers each
candidate is entitled to have at a polling
booth or other place is 1 scrutineer for
each issuing
officer present
at the booth
or place. (5)
A
scrutineer may— (a) object to
an issuing officer’s
decision on
a person’s entitlement to
vote at the election; and (b) object to the
acceptance or rejection of a ballot paper by the returning
officer or a presiding officer; and (c)
record the
identification details
given to
an issuing officer at a
polling booth by a person who votes at the election at the
polling booth; and Page 46 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 63] (d)
remove from the polling booth the
scrutineer’s record of identification details mentioned in
paragraph (c); and (e) do anything else permitted by this
Act. Note— A scrutineer may
record the name and address, as given to an issuing
officer, of a person voting at an election
but may not record details of how the person
voted at the election. See section 192(3). (6)
A
scrutineer must carry adequate identification to show that
the
person is a scrutineer. Subdivision 5 Errors,
omissions or delays 63 Correction of errors, omissions or
delays If there is
an error, omission
or delay in
or relating to
the preparation, issue, sending or return
of any voters roll, ballot paper or
other document
relevant to
the conduct of
an election, it
may be corrected
by a gazette
notice by
the electoral commission setting out what
is to be done. Division 4 Who may
vote 64 Who may vote (1)
The
following persons are the only persons entitled to vote at
an
election— (a) persons enrolled on the voters roll
for— (i) for an
election for
all the local
government’s area—the area;
or (ii) for
an election for
a division of
the local government’s
area—the division; (b) persons whose names are not on the
voters roll for the area or division because of official
error; (c) persons who— Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 47
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2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
65] (i) are not on the voters roll for the
area or division but are entitled
under the
Electoral Act
1992 to
be enrolled on
the electoral roll
for the electoral
district under that Act in which the area or
division is situated; and (ii)
after the cut-off day for the poll and no
later than 6p.m. on the day before the polling day,
give the electoral commission a notice under
the Electoral Act 1992
,
section 65. (2) A person is not entitled to
vote— (a) more than once at the same election;
or (b) at 2
or more divisions
of the same
local government area.
(3) Also, a person who is serving a
sentence of imprisonment is not entitled to
vote at an election. Division 5 How voting takes
place Subdivision 1 System of
voting 65 System of voting (1)
The
system of voting at an election, other than an election of a
mayor of a local government, is—
(a) for a local government area divided
into single-member divisions—optional-preferential voting;
and (b) in any other case—first-past-the-post
voting. (2) The system
of voting at
an election of
a mayor of
a local government is
optional-preferential voting. 66
Compulsory voting Voting at an
election is compulsory for electors. Page 48
Current as at [Not applicable]
Subdivision 2 Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
67] Casting votes Not
authorised —indicative only
67 Ways in which to cast votes
(1) In an election, other than a postal
ballot election, an elector may—
(a) cast their vote at an ordinary or
mobile polling booth on polling day (an ordinary
vote ); or (b)
cast
their vote at a pre-polling booth before polling day
(a pre-poll vote ); or
(c) cast their
vote using
posted voting
papers (a
postal vote
);
or (d) cast an electronically assisted
vote. (2) In a postal ballot election, an
elector must cast a postal vote. 68
Who
may cast votes in particular ways (1)
Any
elector may cast an ordinary vote in an election, other
than
a postal ballot election. (2) Any elector may
cast a pre-poll vote in an election, other than a postal ballot
election. (3) Any elector may cast an absentee vote
in an election, other than a postal ballot election, if the
local government is divided into
divisions. (4) The following electors may cast a
postal vote in an election, other than a
postal ballot election— (a) any elector who
wishes to cast a postal vote before the polling day for
an election; (b) a special postal voter under
subsection (5A). (5) All electors must cast a postal vote
in a postal ballot election. (5A)
For
subsection (4)(b), an elector is a special postal
voter if— (a) the elector’s
name is included in the register of special postal
voters kept
under section
21A because of
a Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
49
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 68] Not
authorised —indicative
only written application that
satisfies the
electoral commission
that— (i) the elector’s address, as shown on the
voters roll at the time the
application is
made, is
more than
15km but
not more than
20km, by
the nearest practicable
route, from a polling booth; or (ii)
the elector’s address
is more than
20km, by
the nearest practicable route, from a
polling booth; or (iii) the
elector is
entitled to
be enrolled as
a general postal
voter under
the Commonwealth Electoral
Act
1918 (Cwlth), section 184A(2)(d) to (k);
or (b) the elector’s address has been
excluded or omitted from the electoral
roll under
an arrangement under
the Electoral Act
1992 ,
section 62, because
of the Commonwealth Electoral
Act 1918 (Cwlth),
section 104. (5B)
Subject to section 75D, if a procedure about
how an elector may cast an electronically assisted vote has
been made under section 75A, an
elector may
cast an
electronically assisted
vote
if— (a) the elector can not vote without
assistance because the elector has— (i)
an
impairment; or (ii) an insufficient
level of literacy; or (b) the elector can
not vote at a polling booth because of an impairment;
or (c) the elector is a member of a class of
electors prescribed under a regulation for this section.
Examples of a class of electors—
• electors whose addresses shown on the
voters roll are more than 20km by the nearest practical route
from a polling booth • electors who
will not, throughout ordinary voting hours on polling
day,
be within Queensland (6) In this
section— Page 50 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 69] absentee
vote means
a vote cast
by an elector
at a polling
booth in any division of a local government
area other than the division of the local government area for
which the elector is enrolled on the voters roll.
Note— There is no
provision under this Act for electors to cast their vote at
a polling booth located in a different local
government area to the one in which the
elector is enrolled on the voters roll. 69
Who
must complete a declaration envelope (1)
An elector must
complete a
declaration envelope
for an election
if— (a) the elector is casting a postal vote;
or (b) the elector’s name is not on the
voters roll apparently because of an official error;
or (c) the elector
appears, from
a record apparently made
in error, to have already voted in the
election; or (d) the elector is serving a sentence of
imprisonment on the cut-off day
for the voters
roll but
is not serving
a sentence of
imprisonment on
the polling day
for the election;
or (e) the elector’s address has been
excluded or omitted from the electoral roll—
(i) because of the Electoral Act
1992 , section 58; or (ii)
under an
arrangement under
the Electoral Act
1992 ,
section 62 because
of the Commonwealth Electoral Act
1918 (Cwlth), section 104. (2)
Also, an elector must complete a declaration
envelope for an election if an issuing officer suspects, on
reasonable grounds, the elector is not entitled to vote at the
election. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
70] 70 Casting an ordinary vote or pre-poll
vote (1) To cast
an ordinary vote
or
pre-poll vote in
an election, an
elector must
follow, in
order, each of
subsections (2) to (7) that applies to the elector.
(2) The elector must— (a)
to
cast an ordinary vote—attend a polling booth in the
local government area during voting hours
for the booth; or (b) to cast a
pre-poll vote—attend a pre-polling booth in the local government
area during voting hours for the booth. (3)
At the polling
booth or
pre-polling booth,
the elector must
give
an issuing officer at the booth the elector’s full name and
address. (4)
The
elector may be asked questions by the issuing officer in
order for the issuing officer to decide the
following— (a) whether the elector is entitled to
vote at the election; (b) whether
the elector must
complete a
declaration envelope.
(6) If the
elector must
complete a
declaration envelope
when casting
their vote,
the elector must
sign the
appropriate declaration on
the declaration envelope
before an
issuing officer and have
the officer sign the envelope as witness. (7)
On
being given the ballot paper and declaration envelope (if
any), the elector must, without
delay— (a) go alone into an unoccupied voting
compartment in the polling booth; and (b)
there, in private, record a vote on the
ballot paper; and (c) fold the ballot paper, concealing the
vote, and— (i) if the elector completed a declaration
envelope— put the folded ballot paper in the envelope,
seal the envelope and
put the sealed
envelope in
the appropriate ballot box at the polling
booth; or Page 52 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 72] (ii)
otherwise—put the
folded ballot
paper in
the appropriate ballot box at the polling
booth; and (d) leave the polling booth.
72 Casting a postal vote by elector other
than special postal voter (1)
To
cast a postal vote in an election, an elector must follow,
in order, each of subsections (2) to (5) that
applies to the elector. (2) The
elector must
apply to
the returning officer
for a declaration
envelope and a ballot paper with which to cast a
postal vote if— (a)
the
election is not a postal ballot election; or Note—
See
section 79 for the relevant application. (b)
the
election is a postal ballot election and the elector has
not
been given a ballot paper or declaration envelope.
Note— See section 81
for the relevant application. (3)
After being given a ballot paper and a
declaration envelope, the elector must, before 6p.m. on
polling day— (a) record a vote on the ballot paper;
and (b) fold the ballot paper, put it in the
declaration envelope and seal the envelope.
(4) The elector
must sign
the declaration on
the declaration envelope in the
presence of an adult, and have the adult sign the envelope as
witness. Note— For
the duty of
a witness in
signing declaration envelopes, see
section 194. (5)
The elector must
put the sealed
declaration envelope
in the reply
paid post
envelope that
accompanied the
declaration envelope and
post or give the envelope to the returning officer.
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
73] Note— The ballot paper
must be received by the returning officer no later than
10
days after the polling day. See section 86(4) or 87(4).
(6) If the elector is unable to apply
under subsection (2) without help, another
person may help the elector apply. (7)
This
section does not apply to a special postal voter.
Note— Ballots are
distributed to special postal voters under section 82.
73 Voting hours for polling booths
(1) The voting hours for an ordinary
polling booth are between 8a.m. and 6p.m. on polling day.
(2) The voting
hours for
a mobile polling
booth are
the times fixed for the
booth by the returning officer. (3)
The
voting hours for a pre-polling booth are the times, during
the
pre-polling period, notified by the returning officer under
section 50(2). (4)
If
an elector is in a polling booth at the time of close of
voting for the booth and for the purpose of casting
a vote, the elector must be allowed to vote. (5)
In
this section— pre-polling period , for an
election, means the period— (a)
starting no earlier than—
(i) 14 days before polling day; or
(ii) the
longer period
that the
returning officer
fixes and notifies in
a newspaper circulating generally in the local
government area, or division of the local government area;
and (b) ending no later than the day before
polling day. Page 54 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 74] 74
Particular responsibilities of returning
officer when electors cast postal votes
(1) This section
applies if
the returning officer
for an election
receives a sealed envelope under section
72(5). (2) The returning
officer must
put the sealed
envelope in
the appropriate ballot box.
Not authorised —indicative only
75 Particular responsibilities of issuing
officers when electors cast ordinary or pre-poll
votes (1) This section
applies if
an elector attends
a polling booth,
during voting
hours for
the booth, to
cast an
ordinary or
pre-poll vote in an election.
(2) An issuing officer at the polling
booth must give the elector a ballot paper
if— (a) the elector
gives the
issuing officer
the elector’s full
name
and address; and (b) the issuing officer is satisfied the
elector is entitled to vote at the election.
(3) The issuing officer may ask the
elector questions to decide the following— (a)
whether the elector is entitled to vote at
the election; (b) whether the
elector must
complete a
declaration envelope.
(4) Subsection (5) applies if, because of
the elector’s answers to the questions under subsection
(3)— (a) the issuing officer suspects, on
reasonable grounds, the elector is not entitled to vote at the
election; or (b) the issuing officer is satisfied the
elector must complete a declaration envelope.
(5) The issuing officer must—
(a) inform the
elector that
the elector must
complete a
declaration envelope; and
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
55
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 75A] (b)
give
the elector the declaration envelope to complete.
(6) An issuing officer must—
(a) keep a
record of
the ballot papers
and declaration envelopes given
to electors under this section; and (b)
sign
the record. Not authorised —indicative
only Subdivision 2A Electronically
assisted voting 75A Prescribed procedures for
electronically assisted voting (1)
The
electoral commission may make procedures about how an
elector may cast an electronically assisted
vote for an election. (2) The procedures
must provide for the following— (a)
the registration of
electors who
may cast an
electronically assisted
vote for
an election under
section 68(5B); (b)
the
authentication of each electronically assisted vote;
(c) the recording
of each elector
who uses electronically assisted
voting; (d) ensuring the secrecy of each
electronically assisted vote; (e)
the secure transmission of
each electronically assisted
vote
to the electoral commissioner, and secure storage of
each
electronically assisted vote by the commissioner,
until printing; (f)
the
printing, for scrutiny and counting, of a ballot paper
for
each electronically assisted vote; (g)
the
secure delivery of each printed ballot paper to the
returning officer. (3)
The
procedures— (a) do not take effect until approved by a
regulation; and (b) must be
tabled in
the Legislative Assembly
with the
regulation approving the procedures;
and Page 56 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 75B] (c)
must be
published on
the electoral commission’s website.
Not authorised —indicative only
75B Audit of electronically assisted
voting for an election (1) The
electoral commission must
appoint an
independent person
to audit the
information technology used
for an election
under the
procedures for
electronically assisted
voting made under section 75A.
(2) The audit must be conducted—
(a) at least
7 days before
the nomination day
for the election;
and (b) within 60 days after the polling day
for the election. (3) A person
appointed under
subsection (1) must
be an individual who
is not, and has not ever been, a member of a political
party. (4) The person
appointed to
conduct the
audit may
make recommendations to
the electoral commission to
reduce or
eliminate risks
that could
affect the
security, accuracy
or secrecy of electronically assisted
voting. (5) A regulation may prescribe
requirements about the conduct of an audit under
this section. 75C Protection of information
technology (1) A person must not disclose to another
person a source code or other computer
software relating
to electronically assisted
voting, unless the disclosure is authorised
under— (a) the procedures approved under section
75A(3); or (b) an agreement
entered into
by the person
with the
electoral commissioner. Maximum
penalty—40 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. (2)
A person must
not, without
reasonable excuse,
destroy or
interfere with
computer software,
a data file
or electronic Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 57
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
75D] device used for or in connection with
electronically assisted voting. Maximum
penalty—100 penalty
units or
2 years imprisonment. 75D
Electoral commissioner may decide
electronically assisted voting is not to be used
(1) The electoral
commissioner may
decide that
electronically assisted voting
is not to be used— (a) at a particular election; or
(b) by a class of electors at a particular
election. (2) The electoral commissioner’s decision
must be in writing and published on the electoral
commission’s website. 75E Review of
electronically assisted voting (1)
On the request
of the Minister
following an
election, the
electoral commissioner must conduct—
(a) a review of the use of electronically
assisted voting for the election; and (b)
an
investigation into extending the use of electronically
assisted voting to other electors for future
elections. (2) A report on the review and
investigation must be given to the Minister.
(3) The Minister must, within 14 days
after receiving the report, table the report
in the Legislative Assembly. Page 58
Current as at [Not applicable]
Subdivision 3 Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
76] Special arrangements for particular
electors Not
authorised —indicative only
76 Arrangements for electors at hospitals
etc. (1) If a polling booth is a hospital or
part of a hospital, an issuing officer
may visit patients
and residents in
the hospital to
enable them to vote. (2)
The electoral commission may
direct that
declaration envelopes be
completed by electors voting under this section if, in the
opinion of the electoral commission, the size of the
voters roll for an election would be
impracticable to be used in a portable
way. (3) Before taking action under subsection
(1), the issuing officer must inform the scrutineers present of
the proposed action. (4) When
visiting patients
and residents in
a hospital who
are electors, the issuing officer
must— (a) take to the elector—
(i) a ballot
paper and,
if directed by
the electoral commission, a
declaration envelope; and (ii) a ballot box;
and (iii) anything
else necessary
to enable the
elector to
vote; and (b)
be accompanied by
any scrutineer who
wishes to
accompany the issuing officer.
(5) The issuing officer must ensure that,
as far as practicable— (a) if the electoral
commission has directed that declaration envelopes
be completed—the elector
completes the
declaration envelope when casting their
vote, including signing the
appropriate declaration on
the declaration envelope
before the
issuing officer
and having the
officer sign the envelope as witness;
and (b) the elector, in private, records a
vote on the ballot paper and folds the ballot paper, concealing
the vote; and Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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[s
77] (c) the elector puts the folded ballot
paper— (i) if the
electoral commission has
directed that
declaration envelopes
be completed—in the
declaration envelope, seals the envelope and
puts the sealed envelope in the ballot box;
or (ii) otherwise—in the
ballot box. (6) In this section— hospital
includes any of the following—
(a) a convalescent home;
(b) a nursing home; (c)
a
home for the aged; (d) a hostel for the aged or
infirm. 77 Arrangements for electoral visitor
voting (1) Each of
the following electors
is entitled to
be a visitor
elector— (a)
an elector who,
because of
illness, disability or
advanced pregnancy, will be prevented from
voting at a polling booth; (b)
an
elector who, because the elector is caring for a person
who is ill,
has a disability or
is pregnant, will
be prevented from voting at a polling
booth. (2) An elector who is entitled to be a
visitor elector may apply to the returning
officer to vote as a visitor elector. (3)
The
application must be in the approved form. (4)
If the application is
received no
later than
7p.m. on
the Wednesday before
polling day,
the returning officer
must direct
an issuing officer
to visit the
elector to
enable the
elector to vote. (5)
As
soon as practicable after the returning officer has directed
an
issuing officer to visit electors, the returning officer
must inform each candidate of—
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government elections [s 78] (a)
the
place from which the issuing officer proposes to start
making visits; and (b)
the
time or times on the day or days when the issuing
officer proposes to start making
visits. (6) The issuing officer must visit an
elector at a reasonable hour before 6p.m. on
polling day. (7) When visiting an elector, the issuing
officer must— (a) take to the elector—
(i) a ballot paper; and
(ii) a ballot box;
and (iii) anything
else necessary
to enable the
elector to
vote; and (b)
be accompanied by
any scrutineer who
wishes to
accompany the issuing officer.
(8) The issuing officer must ensure that,
as far as practicable— (a) the elector, in
private, records a vote on the ballot paper and folds the
ballot paper, concealing the vote; and (b)
the
elector puts the folded ballot paper in the ballot box.
(9) If the elector is unable to apply
under subsection (2) without help, another
person may help the person apply. 78
Help
for electors voting (1) If an elector satisfies an issuing
officer that the elector can not vote
without help,
the elector may
be accompanied into
an unoccupied voting
compartment in
a polling booth,
be assisted in
casting an
electronically assisted
vote or
be otherwise helped, by someone chosen by
the elector. (2) The person
may help the
elector in
any of the
following ways—
(a) if asked by the elector—stating the
names of candidates; (b) acting as
interpreter; Current as at [Not applicable]
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[s
79] (c) explaining the following—
(i) the ballot
paper and
the requirements of
subdivision 5 about its marking;
(ii) for
electronically assisted
voting—any aspect
of the procedure for casting an
electronically assisted vote; (d)
marking or helping to mark the ballot paper,
or helping to cast the
electronically assisted
vote, in
the way the
elector wishes; (e)
folding the ballot paper and putting it into
a ballot box or a declaration envelope;
(f) sealing a declaration envelope or
putting it into a ballot box. (3)
Subsections (1) and (2) apply to all types
of voting. (4) This section applies despite section
70(7)(a) and (b). Subdivision 4 Distribution of
ballot papers 79 Applications to cast postal votes in
local government elections that are not postal ballot
elections (1) This section applies to an application
made by an elector to the returning officer to cast a postal
vote in an election that is not a postal
ballot election. (2) The application— (a)
must
be in the approved form; and (b)
must state
the address to
which the
ballot paper
and declaration envelope
for the elector
is to be
posted, delivered or
sent; and (c) may be given to the returning officer
by any person; and (d) must be received by the returning
officer no later than 7p.m. on the Wednesday before polling
day. (3) Subsection (4) applies if—
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government elections [s 80] (a)
the
application complies with subsection (2); and (b)
the returning officer
is satisfied the
applicant is
an elector who
is entitled to
cast a
postal vote
in the election.
(4) The returning
officer must,
as soon as
practicable after
receiving the application, give the
applicant— (a) a ballot paper and a declaration
envelope; and (b) written instructions on how to cast a
postal vote. (5) The things given to an elector under
subsection (4) must be accompanied by
an unsealed reply
paid post
envelope addressed
to the returning
officer at
the returning officer’s
postal address and bearing the words ‘Ballot
Paper’. (6) However, the unsealed envelope need
not be reply paid post if it is to be sent to an address outside
of Australia. (7) The returning officer must keep a
record of the ballot papers and
declaration envelopes
posted to
electors under
this section.
80 Distribution of ballot papers to
electors for postal ballot elections (1)
For
a postal ballot election, the returning officer must post
the following things
to each elector
for the election
as soon as
practicable after the nomination day—
(a) a ballot paper; (b)
a
declaration envelope; (c) written
instructions on how a vote may be cast. (2)
The
things given to an elector under subsection (1) must—
(a) be accompanied by an unsealed reply
paid post envelope addressed to
the returning officer
at the returning
officer’s postal
address and
bearing the
words ‘Ballot
Paper’; and Current as at
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[s
81] (b) be posted to the elector’s address
stated in the voters roll or an electoral roll mentioned in
the Electoral Act 1992 ,
section 58(3). (3)
However, the unsealed envelope need not be
reply paid post if it is to be sent to an address outside of
Australia. (4) The returning officer must keep a
record of the ballot papers and
declaration envelopes
posted to
electors under
this section.
81 Applications to cast postal votes in
postal ballot elections (1)
This
section applies if a person believes they are entitled to
vote
in a postal ballot election but the person is not given a
ballot paper and declaration envelope under
section 80(1). (2) The person may apply to the returning
officer to cast a postal vote in the postal ballot election
by— (a) giving the
returning officer
an application under
subsection (3); or (b)
contacting the electoral commission using
the telephone number or
electronic contact
details shown
on the electoral
commission’s website. (2A) The application
must be received by the returning officer for the
election no
later than
7p.m. on
the Wednesday before
polling day. (3)
An
application mentioned in subsection (2)(a)— (a)
must
be in the approved form signed by the person; and
Note— The signature of
the elector on the application must match the signature on the
declaration envelope completed by the elector when casting a
postal vote. See sections 86(3) and 87(3). (b)
must state
the address to
which the
ballot paper
and declaration envelope
for the person
is to be
posted, delivered or
sent; and Page 64 Current as at
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 82] (c)
may
be posted, faxed or given to the returning officer by
any
person. (4) Subsection (5) applies if—
(a) the application complies with
subsection (3); and (b) the returning officer is satisfied the
person is an elector who is entitled to cast a postal vote
in the election. (5) The returning
officer must,
as soon as
practicable after
receiving the application, give the
person— (a) a ballot paper and a declaration
envelope; and (b) written instructions on how to cast a
postal vote. (6) The things
given to
a person under
subsection (5) must
be accompanied by
an unsealed reply
paid post
envelope addressed
to the returning
officer at
the returning officer’s
postal address and bearing the words ‘Ballot
Paper’. (7) However, the unsealed envelope need
not be reply paid post if it is to be sent to an address outside
of Australia. (8) The returning officer must keep a
record of the ballot papers and
declaration envelopes
posted to
electors under
subsection (5). (9)
If
the elector is unable to apply under subsection (2) without
help, another person may help the person
apply. 82 Distribution of ballot papers to
particular electors whose address has been omitted from
electoral roll and to special postal voters
(1) As soon
as practicable after
the nomination day
for an election, the
returning officer must post the following things
to each elector
mentioned in
section 69(1)(e) and
to each special postal
voter— (a) a ballot paper; (b)
a
declaration envelope; (c) written
instructions on how a vote may be cast; Current as at
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[s
83] (d) an unsealed reply paid post envelope
addressed to the returning officer at the returning officer’s
postal address and bearing the words ‘Ballot Paper’.
(2) However, the unsealed envelope need
not be reply paid post if it is to be posted to an address
outside Australia. (3) The returning officer must keep a
record of the ballot papers and
declaration envelopes
posted to
electors under
subsection (1). Subdivision
5 Recording a vote on ballot papers
83 How electors must record a vote on a
ballot paper— optional-preferential voting
(1) This section applies if the system of
voting at an election is optional-preferential voting.
(2) An elector must record a vote in
accordance with— (a) if the elector votes using
electronically assisted voting— the procedures
approved under section 75A(3); or (b)
otherwise—subsection (3) or (4).
(3) An elector records a vote on a ballot
paper by— (a) to record a first-preference
vote—writing on the ballot paper the numeral 1, or a tick or a
cross, in the square opposite the name of the candidate for
whom the elector wishes to cast a first-preference vote;
and (b) to record a preference vote—writing
the numerals 2, 3, and so on (in regular arithmetical sequence
by intervals of 1 whole numeral) in other squares to
record the order of the elector’s preferences for the other
candidates. (4) An elector is only required to record
a first-preference vote on a ballot paper but may also record
preference votes for 1 or more, but not necessarily all, of the
candidates. Page 66 Current as at
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 84] 84
How
electors must record a vote on a ballot paper— first-past-the-post voting
(1) This section applies if the system of
voting at an election is first-past-the-post voting.
(1A) An elector must
record a vote in accordance with— (a)
if
the elector votes using electronically assisted voting—
the
procedures approved under section 75A(3); or (b)
otherwise—subsection (2) or (3).
(2) An elector records a vote on a ballot
paper by writing on the ballot paper— (a)
if 1
candidate is to be elected—the numeral 1, or a tick
or cross, in
the square opposite
the name of
the candidate whom the elector prefers;
or (b) if 2 or more candidates are to be
elected— (i) the numeral 1, or a tick or a cross,
in the square opposite the
name of
1 candidate for
whom the
elector wishes to vote; and
(ii) the numerals 2,
3 and so on in the squares opposite the
names of
the other candidates for
whom the
elector wishes
to vote, up
to the number
of candidates to be elected.
85 Replacement ballot papers
(1) If, while voting at a polling booth or
voting under section 77, a ballot paper given to an elector is
accidentally defaced or destroyed, an
issuing officer
must give
the elector a
replacement ballot paper for use in the
poll. (2) However, before a replacement ballot
paper can be given— (a) the ballot paper it replaces
(the replaced ballot paper )
must
not have been already put in a ballot box in use in
the
poll; and (b) the elector must declare, in the
approved form, before the issuing officer that—
Current as at [Not applicable]
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67
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 85] Not
authorised —indicative
only (i) the
replaced ballot
paper has
been accidentally defaced or
destroyed; and (ii) the elector has
not voted in the election; and (c)
if the replaced
ballot paper
has been accidentally defaced—the
elector must give the defaced ballot paper to the issuing
officer; and (d) if the
replaced ballot
paper has
been accidentally destroyed—the
elector must give to the issuing officer, if practicable,
the remains of the ballot paper; and (e)
the
issuing officer must put the defaced ballot paper, or
any remains of
the destroyed ballot
paper, in
an envelope, seal
the envelope and
set it aside
in the officer’s
custody for
separate identification under
section 92(9)(b). (3)
If a
ballot paper given to an elector under section 79, 80 or 82
is
lost in transit or is accidentally defaced or destroyed, the
returning officer for the election must,
before 6p.m. on polling day, give
the elector a
replacement ballot
paper and
a declaration envelope for use in the
election. (4) However, before a replacement ballot
paper can be given— (a) the elector
must declare,
in the approved
declaration form,
before the
issuing officer
or an adult
witness that—
(i) the ballot paper it replaces (also
the replaced ballot paper
)
has not been received by the elector or has been
accidentally defaced or destroyed; and (ii)
the
elector has not voted in the election; and (b)
if the replaced
ballot paper
has been accidentally defaced—the
elector must put the defaced ballot paper into
the elector’s original
declaration envelope
or a replacement
declaration envelope, seal the envelope and give the
envelope to the issuing officer; and (c)
if the replaced
ballot paper
has been accidentally destroyed—the elector
must, if
practicable, put
the remains of the destroyed ballot paper
into the elector’s Page 68 Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 86] original
declaration envelope
or a replacement declaration envelope,
seal the
envelope and
give the
envelope to the issuing officer; and
(d) the issuing
officer must
set aside the
elector’s declaration
envelope in the officer’s custody for separate identification
under section 92(9)(b). (5) The returning
officer must record, in the approved form, the name
and place of
residence of
each person
to whom a
replacement ballot paper is given.
Division 6 Formal and
informal votes 86 Formal and informal ballot
papers—optional-preferential voting
(1) This section applies to an election if
the system of voting is optional-preferential voting.
(2) A ballot paper has effect as recording
a vote in the election only if the ballot paper—
(a) is completed under section 83;
and (b) does not
contain any
writing or
mark (other
than as
permitted by this Act) by which the elector
can, in the returning officer’s opinion, be identified;
and (c) has been put into a ballot box as
required by this Act. (3) Also, if the
ballot paper is sealed in a declaration envelope, as
required by this Act, the envelope must have
been signed, and the signature witnessed, as required by
section 72. (4) Also, if the ballot paper is sealed in
a declaration envelope as a postal vote— (a)
the
ballot paper must be received by the returning officer
no
later than 10 days after polling day; and (b)
for an elector
who made a
signed application under
section 79 or 81 to cast a postal vote in
the election—the Current as at [Not applicable]
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[s
87] signature on
the declaration envelope
must match
the elector’s signature on the
application. (5) If a ballot paper shows 2 or more
squares in which the same numeral is marked, those numerals and
any higher numerals marked in other squares must be
disregarded. (6) If a ballot paper shows a break in the
sequence of numerals marked in
the squares on
the ballot paper
to indicate preferences, the
numeral that
breaks the
sequence and
any higher numerals marked in other
squares must be disregarded. (7)
A ballot paper
that has
effect to
record a
vote under
this section is a
formal ballot paper. (8) A ballot paper
that has no effect to record a vote under this section is an
informal ballot paper. 87 Formal and
informal ballot papers—first-past-the-post voting
(1) This section applies to an election if
the system of voting is first-past-the-post voting.
(2) A ballot paper has effect as recording
a vote in the election only if the ballot paper—
(a) is completed under section 84;
and (b) does not
contain any
writing or
mark (other
than as
permitted by this Act) by which the elector
can, in the returning officer’s opinion, be identified;
and (c) has been put into a ballot box as
required by this Act. (3) Also, if the
ballot paper is sealed in a declaration envelope, as
required by this Act, the envelope must have
been signed, and the signature witnessed, as required by
section 72. (4) Also, if the ballot paper is sealed in
a declaration envelope as a postal vote— (a)
the
ballot paper must be received by the returning officer
no
later than 10 days after polling day; and Page 70
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 88] (b)
for an elector
who made a
signed application under
section 79 or 81 to cast a postal vote in
the election—the signature on
the declaration envelope
must match
the elector’s signature on the
application. (5) A ballot
paper that
complies with
section 84 must
not be rejected merely
because it indicates the elector’s intention to vote for a
number of candidates greater than the number to be
elected. (6)
A ballot paper
that has
effect to
record a
vote under
this section is a
formal ballot paper. (7) A ballot paper
that has no effect to record a vote under this section is an
informal ballot paper. 88 Ballot paper
partly formal and partly informal (1)
This
section applies if— (a) an election
for mayor of
a local government and
an election for
the other councillors of
the local government are
held at the same time and 1 ballot paper is used for both
elections; and (b) the ballot paper, as completed for 1
of the elections, is informal but,
as completed for
the other election,
is formal. (2)
The
informal part of the ballot paper must be rejected and the
formal part of the ballot paper must be
counted under division 7. Division 7
Counting of votes Subdivision
1 Processing declaration envelopes
89 Preliminary processing of declaration
envelopes (1) For a postal ballot election, the
returning officer may open all ballot boxes and
examine the declaration envelopes to decide Current as at
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[s
91] whether the ballot papers in the envelopes
are to be accepted for counting. (2)
For an election
other than
a postal ballot
election, the
returning officer
may open all
ballot boxes
containing only
sealed declaration envelopes
and examine the
envelopes to
decide whether
the ballot papers
in the envelopes
are to be
accepted for counting. (3)
As soon as
practicable after
6p.m. on
polling day,
the returning officer may open all other
ballot boxes containing sealed declaration envelopes
and examine the
envelopes to
decide whether
the ballot papers
in the envelopes
are to be
accepted for counting. (4)
As
soon as practicable after receipt by the returning officer
of a parcel of sealed declaration envelopes
from a polling booth, the returning
officer may
open the
parcel and
examine the
envelopes to decide whether the ballot
papers in the envelopes are to be accepted for
counting. 91 Procedure for processing declaration
envelopes (1) The returning officer must—
(a) inform all candidates for election of
the times when, and the places where,
declaration envelopes
will be
examined by the returning officer;
and (b) allow the candidates, or their
scrutineers, to attend at the processing of
declaration envelopes. (2) On
examining the
declaration envelopes, if
the returning officer
is satisfied the
declaration has
been properly
completed, the
envelope is
sealed and
the declarant on
the envelope is entitled to cast a vote,
the returning officer must— (a)
detach the elector’s declaration from the
envelope; and (b) either— (i)
place a mark in ink against the declarant’s
name on the voters roll; or Page 72
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 92] (ii)
if the voters
roll is
kept in
an electronic form—
record in a way approved by the returning
officer that the declarant has voted; and
(c) place the
envelope containing the
ballot paper
(the accepted
envelope ) in a locked or sealed ballot box;
and (d) keep the accepted envelope in the
ballot box until dealt with under subsection (3) and section
95. (3) The returning officer may take the
accepted envelopes from the locked or sealed ballot box and
remove the ballot papers from the
envelopes, without
unfolding them,
or allowing anyone
else to
unfold them,
and keep them
in a locked
or sealed ballot box until dealt with
under section 95. (4) The returning officer must—
(a) put all ballot papers (not in
declaration envelopes) that are
in a ballot
box opened under
section 89(3) into
a locked or sealed ballot box, without
unfolding them, or allowing anyone else to unfold them;
and (b) keep them there until they are dealt
with in the official counting of votes. (5)
If a
declaration envelope is rejected, the returning officer must
set
it aside in the officer’s custody for separate
identification. (6) The returning
officer must
seal up
in separate parcels,
and keep in
the officer’s custody
for separate identification, all
rejected declaration envelopes, accepted
envelopes from
which ballot
papers have
been removed
and elector’s declarations that
have been
removed from
declaration envelopes. Subdivision
2 Preliminary counts 92
Preliminary counting of ordinary
votes (1) The presiding officer of a polling
booth must follow, in order, the procedures
stated in subsections (3) to (11)— Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 92] Not
authorised —indicative
only (a) as soon as
practicable after the end of ordinary voting hours for the
polling booth; and (b) at a place nominated by the officer;
and (c) in the
presence of
issuing officers
and any candidates and scrutineers
who wish to attend. (2) However, the
presiding officer
may do anything
required under
subsections (3) to
(10) through
an issuing officer
authorised by the presiding officer for that
purpose. (3) Open all ballot boxes used at the
polling booth. (4) Identify, and
keep in
a separate parcel,
all declaration envelopes
and all ballot
papers printed
for electronically assisted
votes. (5) Examine all
ballot papers
that are
not in declaration envelopes,
and— (a) identify, and
keep in
a separate parcel,
all informal ballot papers;
and (b) if the
system of
voting is
first-past-the-post voting—
count the number of votes for each candidate
marked on all formal ballot papers, and keep the
ballot papers in a separate parcel; and (c)
if
the system of voting is optional-preferential voting—
arrange all formal ballot papers under the
names of the candidates by
putting in
a separate parcel
all formal ballot
papers on
which a
first-preference vote
is recorded for the same
candidate. (6) Prepare a written statement in the
approved form. (7) Seal up
in separate parcels
all formal and
informal ballot
papers, declaration envelopes and unused
ballot papers. (8) Endorse on each parcel a description
of its contents, sign the endorsement and allow any scrutineers,
who wish to do so, to countersign the endorsement.
(9) Put the following into separate
parcels and endorse on each parcel a
description of its contents— Page 74
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 93] (a)
the voters roll
and all books
and papers used
by the presiding
officer in the poll with 1 copy of the statement
prepared under subsection (6);
(b) all ballot papers or remains
of ballot papers
set aside, under
section 85(2)(e) or
(4)(d), for
separate identification. (10)
Endorse the
following on
each parcel,
and sign each
endorsement— (a)
the
name of the local government area, or division of the
local government area, for which the
election was held; (b) the name of the polling booth from
which the parcel has come. (11)
The
presiding officer must, as soon as practicable, give each
of the following
things to
the returning officer
or a person
nominated by the returning officer—
(a) the parcels mentioned in subsections
(3) to (10); (b) a copy of the statement prepared under
subsection (6), other than the copy mentioned in subsection
(9)(a); (c) a reconciliation statement, in the
approved form, for all ballot papers given out at the polling
booth and all votes put in ballot boxes at the booth.
93 Objections by scrutineers during
preliminary count (1) If, while a presiding officer is
complying with section 92(5), a candidate or
scrutineer objects to the treatment of a particular
ballot paper as informal, the officer must
mark on the back of it ‘formal’ or
‘informal’ according
to whether the
officer’s decision is to
treat it as formal or informal. (2)
If,
while a presiding officer is complying with section 92(5), a
candidate or scrutineer objects to the
counting of a vote for a particular candidate, the officer must
mark on the back of the relevant ballot paper the name of the
candidate for whom it is counted. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 75
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 95] Subdivision
3 Official count Not
authorised —indicative
only 95 Official counting
of votes (1) The returning
officer must
follow, in
order, the
procedures stated in
subsections (2) to (6)— (a) as
soon as
practicable after
close of
the poll in
an election; and (b)
in the presence
of the candidates or
scrutineers who
wish
to attend. (2) The returning officer must work out
from the statements of presiding officers under section
92(6)— (a) if the system of voting is
first-past-the-post voting—the number of votes
cast for each candidate; or (b)
if
the system of voting is optional-preferential voting—
the number of
first-preference votes
cast for
each candidate. (3)
The
returning officer must— (a) open
all sealed parcels
of ballot papers
given to
the returning officer under section 92(11)
or sealed by the returning officer if the returning officer
conducted the preliminary count under section 92;
and (b) examine all
ballot papers
that are
not in declaration envelopes
and— (i) if the
system of
voting is
first-past-the-post voting—count the
number of
votes cast
for each candidate
on formal ballot
papers, and
keep the
ballot papers in a separate parcel;
or (ii) if
the system of
voting is
optional-preferential voting—arrange
all formal ballot papers under the names
of the candidates by
putting in
a separate parcel
the formal ballot
papers on
which a
first-preference vote
is indicated for
the same candidate, and
count the number of first-preference Page 76
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 95] votes
for each candidate
on the formal
ballot papers.
(4) The returning officer must—
(a) open all other ballot boxes on hand;
and (b) open all
accepted envelopes
mentioned in
section 91(2)(d) that
have not
yet been opened
and remove the ballot papers; and
(c) identify, and
keep in
a separate parcel,
all informal ballot papers;
and (d) examine all formal ballot papers
and— (i) if the
system of
voting is
first-past-the-post voting—count the
number of
votes cast
for each candidate on the
ballot papers, and keep the ballot papers in a
separate parcel; or (ii) if
the system of
voting is
optional-preferential voting—arrange
the ballot papers under the names of the
candidates by putting in a separate parcel the ballot
papers on
which a
first-preference vote
is recorded for
the same candidate, and
count the
number of first-preference votes for each
candidate on the ballot papers. (5)
The
returning officer must add together— (a)
if
the system of voting is first-past-the-post voting—the
number counted
under subsections
(3)(b)(i) and (4)(d)(i); or (b)
if
the system of voting is optional-preferential voting—
the number counted
under subsections
(3)(b)(ii) and (4)(d)(ii). (6)
The
returning officer must reapply subsections (4) and (5) as
more declaration envelopes
are received by
the returning officer under
section 72 after close of the poll. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 77
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
96] 96 Objections by scrutineers during
official count (1) If, while the returning officer is
complying with section 95, a candidate or
scrutineer objects to the treatment of a particular
ballot paper as informal, the officer must
mark on the back of it ‘formal’ or
‘informal’ according
to whether the
officer’s decision is to
treat it as formal or informal. (2)
If,
while the returning officer is complying with section 95, a
candidate or scrutineer objects to the
counting of a vote for a particular candidate, the officer must
mark on the back of the relevant ballot paper the name of the
candidate for whom it is counted. 96A
Re-counting of votes (1)
At any time
before the
following happens,
the electoral commission may
direct the
returning officer,
or another member of the
electoral commission’s staff, to re-count some or all of the
ballot papers for an election— (a)
the
result of the poll for the election is notified by the
electoral commission under section
100; (b) the electoral commission refers a
matter to the Court of Disputed Returns under part 7.
(2) The returning officer may re-count
some or all of the ballot papers for the election at any time
before the results of the election are notified.
(3) A person carrying out a re-count of
ballot papers must, so far as practicable, ensure that the
requirements of section 95 are complied
with. (4) This section does not limit by
implication section 9(5). Page 78 Current as at
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Subdivision 4 Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
97] Deciding results of local
government elections Not
authorised —indicative only
97 Counting of votes for
optional-preferential system (1)
This
section applies for counting votes in an election in which
the
system of voting is optional-preferential voting.
(2) If, after final counting under section
95, an absolute majority of formal
first-preference votes
are for 1
candidate, that
candidate is elected. (3)
Alternatively, if
there is
no absolute majority
of the formal
first-preference votes
for 1 candidate, a
further count
assigning preference votes
must be
conducted and,
if necessary, repeated
until an
absolute majority
of the remaining votes
are for 1 candidate. (4) For subsection
(3), a further count assigning preference votes is conducted
by— (a) excluding the
candidate with
the fewest votes
in a previous count;
and (b) excluding all
ballot papers
on which there
is not recorded a
preference vote for a candidate who has not been excluded
for the count or a previous count; and (c)
assigning each
preference vote
recorded on
the remaining ballot papers to the
candidate who— (i) is next in the order of an elector’s
preference on the ballot paper; and (ii)
has
not been excluded; and (d) counting the
number of votes (first-preference votes for a candidate
together with any preference votes assigned to the
candidate) for each candidate who has not been excluded.
(5) If, after
final counting
under subsection
(4), an absolute majority
of the votes
remaining in
the count are
for 1 candidate, that
candidate is elected. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
79
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 97] Not
authorised —indicative
only (6) If
subsection (4)(a) can
not be applied
because 2
or more candidates (1
of whom must
be excluded) have
an equal number of votes,
the candidate to be excluded is— (a)
if there has
been an
earlier count—the
candidate who
had the fewest
votes at
the last count
at which the
candidates did not have an equal number of
votes; or (b) if there has not been an earlier count
or the candidates had an equal number of votes at all earlier
counts—the candidate whose
name is
on a slip
chosen under
subsection (7). (7)
For subsection (6)(b), the
returning officer
must, in
the presence of any candidates, or their
representative, who wish to attend— (a)
write the
names of
the candidates who
have an
equal number of votes
on similar slips of paper; and (b)
fold
the slips, concealing the names; and (c)
put
the slips in an opaque container and shuffle them;
and (d) raise the
container so that its contents can not be seen and choose a
slip at random. (8) If, under
subsection (6), the
candidates who
have an
equal number
of votes are
the only candidates remaining
in the count, then,
despite subsection (6), the candidate whose name
is
recorded under subsection (9)(g) is elected. (9)
The
returning officer must, in the presence of 2 witnesses—
(a) prepare a list of the candidates;
and (b) assign a different number or colour to
each candidate; and (c) place
only the
marbles, balls
or other similar
things (
marbles ),
complying with
subsection (10), in
an opaque container large enough to allow
the marbles in it to move about freely when it is rotated;
and (d) rotate the container and permit
another person present who wishes to do so to rotate it;
and Page 80 Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 98] (e)
raise the container so that its contents can
not be seen; and (f) while the
container is raised, take 1 of the marbles out of
it
or allow 1 of the marbles to come out of it; and
(g) record the name of the candidate
assigned the numbered or coloured marble that, under
paragraph (f), is taken or allowed to come out of the
container. (10) For subsection
(9)(c), the marbles must be— (a)
the
same size and weight; and (b) the same colours
or numbers as the colours or numbers assigned under
subsection (9)(b) to the candidates. (11)
The
returning officer must allow each of the 2 candidates, or
their representative, to be present for the
process mentioned in subsection (9). (12)
In
this section— absolute majority means more than
50% of votes. 98 Counting of votes for
first-past-the-post system (1) This section
applies for counting votes in an election in which
the
system of voting is first-past-the-post voting. (2)
If
only 1 person is to be elected, the candidate who receives
the
majority of votes is elected. (3)
If subsection (2) can
not be applied
because 2
or more candidates have
an equal number
of votes, the
candidate whose name is
recorded under subsection (7)(g) is elected. (4)
If 2
or more persons are to be elected (as councillors)—the
candidates elected are— (a)
the
candidate who receives the majority of votes; and
(b) the candidates who receive the next
highest number of votes, up to the number of persons to be
elected. Note— A candidate who
receives no votes has a number of votes that is 0.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
98] (5) If— (a)
subsection (4) can
not be applied
because 2
or more candidates
(the tied candidates ) have an equal
number of votes; and (b)
the number of
tied candidates, together
with any
candidates already elected under subsection
(4), is more than the number of persons to be
elected; the candidate whose name is recorded under
subsection (7)(g) is elected. Note—
A
candidate who receives no votes has a number of votes that is
0. (6) To remove any doubt, it is declared
that, if— (a) subsection (4) can
not be applied
there are
tied candidates;
and (b) the number
of tied candidates, together
with any
candidates already
elected under
subsection (4), is
not more than the number of persons to be
elected; the tied candidates are elected.
Example for subsection (6)—
If
three persons remain to be elected and the 2 candidates with
the highest number of votes have an equal number
of votes, the candidates are elected and then only 1 person
would remain to be elected. (7)
The
returning officer must, in the presence of 2 witnesses—
(a) prepare a list of the candidates;
and (b) assign a different number or colour to
each candidate; and (c) place
only the
marbles, balls
or other similar
things (
marbles ), complying
with subsection (8), in an opaque container
large enough
to allow the
marbles in
it to move about
freely when it is rotated; and (d)
rotate the container and permit another
person present who wishes to do so to rotate it; and
Page
82 Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 99] (e)
raise the container so that its contents can
not be seen; and (f) while the
container is raised, take 1 of the marbles out of
it
or allow 1 of the marbles to come out of it; and
(g) record the name of the candidate
assigned the numbered or coloured marble that, under
paragraph (f), is taken or allowed to come out of the
container. (8) For subsection (7)(c), the marbles
must be— (a) the same size and weight; and
(b) the same colours or numbers as the
colours or numbers assigned under subsection (7)(b) to the
candidates. (9) The returning
officer must
allow each
of the candidates, or
their representative, to be present for the
process mentioned in subsection (7). 99
Returning officer’s duty after counting
votes When the
result of
the poll for
the election is
known, the
returning officer must— (a)
seal
up all of the formal ballot papers, informal ballot
papers, rejected
declaration envelopes, accepted
envelopes from which ballot papers have been
removed, electors’ declarations that
have been
removed from
declaration envelopes, defaced ballot
papers, remains of destroyed ballot papers, unused ballot
papers, books and papers (other
than the
voters roll)
of each presiding
officer used in the poll; and
(b) endorse on each parcel a description
of its contents and sign the endorsement; and
(c) allow any scrutineers, who wish to do
so, to countersign the endorsement. Current as at
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 4 Local government elections
[s
100] Division 8 Notifying the
results of local government elections etc.
100 Notifying the results of an
election (1) As soon as practicable after the
result of a poll for an election is
known, the
electoral commission must,
by notice in
the approved form, declare—
(a) the result of the poll; and
(b) for a poll for the election of a
mayor, the name of the mayor who has been elected; and
(c) the names of each candidate who has
been elected. (2) The electoral commission must—
(a) ensure the notice is displayed in a
conspicuous place in the office of the returning officer;
and (b) publish the notice in a newspaper
circulating generally in the local government area, or the
division of the local government area, for which the
election was held. (3) The returning officer must ensure the
notice is published on the website
of the local
government for
which the
election was held.
(4) The electoral
commission must
not delay complying
with subsection (1)
or (2) merely because some ballot papers have not
been received
by the returning
officer, if
it is clear
the votes recorded on the ballot papers
could not affect the result of the
election. 101 Notice of results of poll to
candidates The electoral commission must give notice of
the final result of the poll to each candidate as soon as
practicable after— (a) all ballot papers used in the poll
have been examined; and Page 84 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 4 Local
government elections [s 102] (b)
all
votes cast in the poll on ballot papers that appear to
be
formal have been counted. 102 Storage and
disposal of material resulting from election (1)
As soon as
practicable after
the electoral commission gives
notice of
the final result
of a poll
for an election
under section 101, the
returning officer for the election must— (a)
destroy all unused ballot papers; and
(b) seal up
in packets all
other parcels
sealed up
under section 99;
and (c) endorse the
following on
each packet
and sign the
endorsement— (i)
a
description of its contents; (ii)
the
name of the local government area, or division of a local
government area, for which the election was held;
(iii) the polling day;
and (d) give each packet to the electoral
commission. (2) The electoral
commission must
keep the
packets in
safe custody until
the next quadrennial election. (3)
At the end
of the period
under subsection
(2), the electoral commission
must— (a) destroy all ballot papers contained in
the packets; and (b) dispose of the other contents of the
packets in the way the commission considers appropriate.
103 Notice to electors whose ballot papers
are not accepted (1) This section applies if—
(a) in an election, a person casts a vote
in the election and completes a declaration envelope for the
vote; and Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
85
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 5 Fresh elections [s 104]
(b) the person’s
ballot paper
is not accepted
for counting under
section 91 because
the returning officer
is not satisfied that
the declarant on the declaration envelope is entitled to cast
a vote in the election. (2) As
soon as
practicable after
the election, the
electoral commission must
send a
notice to
the person advising
the person why the ballot paper was not
accepted for counting. 104 Notice to
electoral commission of error in electoral roll As soon as
practicable after an election, the returning officer
must
give to the electoral commission notice of the names and
addresses of
all persons permitted
to vote at
the election whose names are
not on the voters roll, apparently because of official error,
if the error relates to the keeping of an electoral
roll
under the Electoral Act 1992 .
Part
5 Fresh elections 105
Arrangements for fresh election
(1) This section applies if—
(a) under the Local Government
Act 2009 , section 123(3) a regulation
directs that a fresh election of councillors of a
local government be held; or
Note— The
direction under
the Local Government Act
2009 ,
section 123(3) may be given only after the
ratification of the dissolution of the local government by the
Legislative Assembly. (b) a regulation
directs that a fresh election of councillors of a local
government, or a division of a local government,
be
held to implement a local government change under
the Local Government Act 2009
,
chapter 2, part 3. (2) The day
on which a
fresh election
is to be
held must
be a Saturday.
Page
86 Current as at [Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 106]
(3) The provisions of part 4 apply, with
all necessary changes and any changes prescribed by regulation,
to the fresh election as if the election were a quadrennial
election. Not authorised —indicative only
Part
6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure Division 1
Preliminary 106
Definitions for part In this
part— candidate’s disclosure period
means the
disclosure period
applying to the candidate under division 2,
subdivision 1. disclosure date
, for a
return, means
the day prescribed by
regulation for the return.
electoral expenditure means
expenditure incurred
for the purposes
of a campaign
for an election,
whether or
not the expenditure is
incurred during
the election period
for the election.
gift see section
107(1) and (2). gifts register see section
128(1). group’s disclosure period
means the disclosure period for the
group of candidates under section
116. information notice
, about a
decision, means
a notice that
states— (a)
the
decision; and (b) the reasons for the decision;
and (c) that the person to whom the notice is
given may apply to the electoral commissioner for a review of
the decision within 20
business days
after the
person receives
the notice; and Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 87
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 106] (d)
how
to apply for a review. loan means any of the
following made other than by use of a credit
card— (a) an advance of money;
(b) a provision
of credit or
another form
of financial accommodation; (c)
a
payment of an amount for, on account of, on behalf of
or
at the request of an entity, if there is an express or
implied obligation to repay the
amount; (d) a transaction (whatever
its terms or
form) that
in substance effects a loan of
money. person acting on behalf of a
candidate see section 111(1). person
acting on
behalf of
a group of
candidates see
section 111(2). political
activity means any of the following—
(a) publication by any means (including
radio or television) of election material;
(b) public expression of views on an issue
in an election; (c) a gift to a political party;
(d) a gift to a candidate in an
election; (e) a gift to a person on the
understanding that the person or someone else
will apply, either directly or indirectly, the whole or a part
of the gift for a purpose mentioned in paragraph (a),
(b), (c) or (d). political donation , for division
1A, see section 113A. prohibited donor , for division
1A, see section 113(1). registered industrial organisation means
an organisation registered under
a law of
the State, another
State or
the Commonwealth about
the registration of
industrial organisations. relevant
details , for a gift, see section 109.
Page
88 Current as at [Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 107]
required period
, for an
election, means
15 weeks after
the polling day for the election or, if no
poll is conducted, the day a poll would have been conducted if it
were required. third party see section
123. value , of a gift, see
section 108. Not authorised —indicative only
107 Meaning of gifts
(1) A gift
is— (a) the disposition
of property or the provision of a service, without
consideration or for a consideration that is less
than
the market value, but does not include— (i)
transmission of property under a will;
or (ii) provision of a
service by volunteer labour; or (b)
payment for
attendance at
or participation in
a fundraising activity.
(2) However, the disposition of property
or provision of a service to a candidate is not a gift if it is
made in a private capacity, for the
candidate’s personal use, and the candidate does not
use,
and does not intend to use, it solely or substantially for a
purpose related to any election.
(3) In this section— disposition of
property means
a conveyance, transfer,
assignment, settlement, delivery, payment or
other alienation of property, including, for example—
(a) the allotment of shares in a
corporation; and (b) the creation of a trust in property;
and (c) the grant
or creation of
a lease, mortgage,
charge, servitude, licence,
power, partnership or
interest in
property; and (d)
the release, discharge, surrender, forfeiture or
abandonment, at law or in equity, of a debt,
contract or chose in action, or of an interest in
property; and Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
89
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 108]
(e) the exercise
by a person
of a general
power of
appointment of property in favour of someone
else; and (f) a transaction by
a person with
intent to
diminish, directly
or indirectly, the
value of
the person’s own
property and
to increase the
value of
someone else’s
property. Not
authorised —indicative
only 108 Meaning of
value of gifts
The value , of a gift,
is— (a) if the gift is money—the amount of
money; or (b) if the gift is property other than
money— (i) the market value of the property;
or (ii) if
a regulation prescribes principles under
which the
value of
the property is
to be decided—the value decided
under the principles; or (c) if the gift is
the provision of a service— (i)
the
amount that would reasonably be charged for providing the
service if the service were provided on a commercial
basis; or (ii) if
a regulation prescribes principles under
which the amount that
would reasonably be charged for providing the
service is to be decided—the amount decided under
the principles; or (d) if the gift is a payment for
attendance at, or participation in,
a fundraising activity—the gross
amount of
the payment, regardless of the value of
anything received in consideration for the payment.
109 Meaning of relevant
details for gifts The
relevant details , for a gift,
are the value of the gift and when the gift
was made and— (a) for a gift purportedly made on behalf
of the members of an unincorporated association—
Page
90 Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 110]
(i) the association’s name; and
(ii) unless
the association is
a registered industrial organisation—the names
and residential or
business addresses of the members of the
executive committee, however described, of the
association; or (b) for a gift
purportedly made out of a trust fund or out of the funds of a
foundation— (i) the names and residential or business
addresses of the trustees of
the fund or
other persons
responsible for the funds of the foundation;
and (ii) the title or
other description of the trust fund or the name of the
foundation; and (iii) if the gift is
made out of a trust account of a lawyer or
accountant under
the instructions of
a person who is in
substance the giver of the gift—the name and residential
or business address of the person; or
(c) for a
gift not
mentioned in
paragraph (a)
or (b)—the name and
residential or business address of the person who gave the
gift. 110 References to candidates
A
person who is a candidate in an election is taken, for this
part, to
remain a
candidate for
the entire period
of the candidate’s
disclosure period for the election. 111
Agents and campaign committees
(1) A person
acting on
behalf of
a candidate includes
a committee formed to help the
candidate’s election campaign in
an election but
does not
include a
committee that
is recognised by a political party as
forming part of the political party.
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
91
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 112]
(2) A person acting on
behalf of a group of candidates includes
a committee formed
to help the
election campaign
of members of the group in an
election. Not authorised —indicative
only 112 Related
corporations For this part— (a)
a
body corporate and any other body corporate related to
it
are taken to be the 1 body corporate; and (b)
whether a
body corporate
is related to
another body
corporate must
be decided in
the same way
a body corporate
is decided to
be related to
another body
corporate under the Corporations Act.
Division 1A Political
donations from property developers 113
Meaning of prohibited donor
(1) For this division, prohibited
donor — (a) means—
(i) a property developer; or
(ii) an industry
representative organisation, a majority of whose members
are property developers; but (b)
does
not include an entity for whom a determination is
in
effect under section 113D. Note— See
section 194C(4)
in relation to
the non-effect of
a determination in particular
circumstances. (2) For subsection (1)(a),
each of
the following persons
is a property
developer — (a) a
corporation engaged
in a business
that regularly
involves the making of relevant planning
applications by or on behalf of the corporation—
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 113]
(i) in connection with
the residential or
commercial development of
land; and (ii) with the
ultimate purpose of the sale or lease of the land for
profit; (b) a close
associate of
a corporation mentioned
in paragraph (a). (3)
For deciding whether
a corporation is
a corporation mentioned in
subsection (2)(a), any activity engaged in by the
corporation for
the dominant purpose
of providing commercial
premises at which the corporation, or
a related body corporate
of the corporation, will carry on business is to
be disregarded, unless
the business involves
the sale or
leasing of a substantial part of the
premises. (4) In this section— close
associate , of a corporation, means any of the
following persons— (a)
a
related body corporate of the corporation; (b)
a
director or other officer of the corporation; (c)
a
person with more than 20% of the voting power in the
corporation or
a related body
corporate of
the corporation; (d)
a
spouse of an individual mentioned in paragraph (b) or
(c); (e)
if the corporation or
a related body
corporate of
the corporation is
a stapled entity
in relation to
a stapled security—the other
stapled entity
in relation to
the stapled security; (f)
if
the corporation is a trustee, manager or responsible
entity in
relation to
a unit trust—a
person who
holds more than 20% of
the units in the trust; (g) if the
corporation is a trustee, manager or responsible
entity in relation to a discretionary
trust—a beneficiary of the trust. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 93
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 113] director
, of
a corporation, see the Corporations Act, section
9. officer , of a
corporation, see the Corporations Act, section 9.
related body
corporate ,
of a corporation, see
the Corporations Act, section 9.
relevant planning application
means— (a)
an application for,
or to change,
a development approval under
the Planning Act 2016 or the repealed Sustainable
Planning Act 2009; or (b) a request to the
Minister administering the Planning Act 2016 or the
repealed Sustainable Planning Act 2009 or a local
government about the making or amendment of a planning
instrument or designation under either Act; or (c)
an
application for, or to change, an SDA approval under
the
State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971;
or (d) a request or application to the
Minister who administers the State Development and Public Works
Organisation Act 1971 or the Coordinator-General about
any of the following under that Act—
(i) the declaration or
variation of
a coordinated project,
prescribed development, prescribed project or State
development area; (ii) the
imposition of,
or change to,
conditions on
a coordinated project;
(iii) the
preparation or
variation of
a development scheme;
or (e) an application for,
or to change,
a PDA development approval under
the Economic Development Act 2012; or (f)
a
request to the Minister who administers the Economic
Development Act 2012 or the MEDQ about the
making, declaration or amendment of any of the
following under that Act— Page 94
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Local
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funding and financial disclosure [s 113A]
(i) a priority development area or
provisional priority development area; (ii)
a development scheme,
interim land
use plan, or
PDA-associated development for
a priority development
area; (iii) a
provisional land
use plan or
PDA-associated development for
a provisional priority
development area; or (g)
an application or
request of
a type prescribed by
regulation to be a relevant planning
application. stapled entity —
(a) means an entity the interests in which
are traded along with the interests in another entity as
stapled securities; and (b) for an entity
mentioned in paragraph (a) that is a trust, includes
any trustee, manager
or responsible entity
in relation to the trust.
voting power see the
Corporations Act, section 610. 113A
Meaning of political donation
(1) For this
division, each
of the following
is a political
donation —
(a) a gift made to or for the benefit
of— (i) a political party; or
(ii) a councillor of
a local government; or (iii) a candidate or
group of candidates in an election; (b)
a
gift made to or for the benefit of another entity—
(i) to enable the entity (directly or
indirectly) to make a gift mentioned
in paragraph (a)
or to incur
electoral expenditure; or
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
95
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 113A]
Not authorised —indicative
only (ii) to
reimburse the entity
(directly or indirectly) for making
a gift mentioned
in paragraph (a)
or incurring electoral
expenditure; (c) a loan from an entity other than a
financial institution that, if the loan were a gift, would
be a gift mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b).
(2) If a
gift is
made by
a person in
a private capacity
to an individual
(the recipient ) for the
recipient’s personal use and the
recipient does
not intend to
use the gift
for an electoral
purpose— (a)
the
gift is not a political donation when it is made; but
(b) if any part of the gift is used for an
electoral purpose, then, for the purposes of section
113B(3)— (i) that part of the gift is a political
donation; and (ii) the recipient is
taken to accept that part of the gift at the time it
is used for an electoral purpose. (3)
A
reference in subsection (2) to using a gift for an
electoral purpose
is a reference
to using the
gift to
incur electoral
expenditure or for the recipient’s duties as
a councillor of a local government. (4)
In
this section— disposition of property see section
107(3). gift means—
(a) the disposition of property or the
provision of a service, without consideration or for a
consideration that is less than the market value, but does not
include— (i) transmission of property under a will;
or (ii) provision of a
service by volunteer labour; or (b)
an
amount of interest that would have been payable on a
loan
if— (i) the loan
had been made
on terms requiring
the payment of
interest at
the generally prevailing interest rate
for a loan of that kind; and Page 96
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Local
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funding and financial disclosure [s 113B]
(ii) any interest
payable had not been waived; and (iii)
any
interest payments were not capitalised; or (c)
an
amount paid for attendance at or participation in a
fundraising activity, to the extent the
amount forms part of the proceeds
of the fundraising activity
to which it
relates; or (d)
any of the
following amounts
paid by
a person to
a political party,
to the extent
the total amount
of the person’s
payments in a calendar year exceeds $1,000— (i)
an amount paid
as a subscription for
a person’s membership of
the party; (ii) an amount paid
for a person’s affiliation with the party.
113B Political donations by prohibited
donors (1) It is
unlawful for
a prohibited donor
to make a
political donation.
(2) It is
unlawful for
a person to
make a
political donation
on behalf of a prohibited donor.
(3) It is unlawful for a person to accept
a political donation that was made (wholly or in part) by or on
behalf of a prohibited donor. (4)
It is unlawful
for a prohibited donor
to solicit a
person to
make
a political donation. (5) It is unlawful
for a person to solicit, on behalf of a prohibited
donor, another person to make a political
donation. 113C Recovery of prohibited
donations (1) If a
person accepts
a prohibited donation,
the following amount is
payable by the person to the State— (a)
if the person
knew it
was unlawful to
accept the
prohibited donation—an amount
equal to
twice the
amount or value of the prohibited
donation; Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 113C] (b)
otherwise—an amount equal to the amount or
value of the prohibited donation. (2)
The
amount may be recovered by the State as a debt due to the
State from— (a)
if
the recipient is a registered political party that is not a
corporation—the party’s agent; or
(b) if the recipient is a group of
candidates—the members of the group or the group’s agent;
or (c) if the
recipient is
a candidate—the candidate
or the candidate’s
agent; or (d) otherwise—the recipient.
(3) The imposition of liability to pay an
amount to the State under this section— (a)
is
not a punishment or sentence for an offence against
section 194A or any other offence;
and (b) is not
a matter to
which a
court may
have regard
in sentencing an
offender for
an offence against
section 194A or any
other offence. (4) An action
in a court
to recover an
amount due
to the State
under this section may be brought in the
name of the electoral commission. (5)
Any
process in the action required to be served on the State
may
be served on the electoral commission. (6)
In
this section— prohibited donation
means a
political donation
that was
unlawfully made or accepted under section
113B. recipient means
the entity to
whom, or
for the benefit
of whom, the prohibited donation was
made. Page 98 Current as at
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Local
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funding and financial disclosure [s 113D]
113D Making of determination that entity is
not a prohibited donor (1)
A person may
apply to
the electoral commissioner for
a determination that
the person, or
another entity,
is not an
entity mentioned in section 113(1)(a)(i) or
(ii). (2) The application must
be written and
supported by
enough information to
enable the
electoral commissioner to
decide the
application. (3) If the electoral commissioner
is satisfied the
entity to
whom the
application relates
is not an
entity mentioned
in section 113(1)(a)(i) or
(ii), the electoral commissioner must make the determination
sought by the applicant. (4) Otherwise, the
electoral commissioner must— (a)
decide not to make the determination;
and (b) give the
applicant an
information notice
about the
decision. (5)
A determination has
effect for
1 year unless
it is earlier
revoked. 113E
Revocation of determination
(1) If, at
any time, the
electoral commissioner ceases
to be satisfied the
entity to whom a determination relates is not an
entity mentioned
in section 113(1)(a)(i) or (ii),
the electoral commissioner may
revoke the
determination by
giving a
written notice of revocation to the entity
and, if the entity was not the applicant for the
determination, the applicant. (2)
The
notice of revocation given to the entity must include, or be
accompanied by, an information notice about
the decision to revoke the determination.
113F Register of determinations
(1) The electoral
commissioner must
keep a
register of
determinations made under section
113D. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 113G] (2)
The
register must include any revocations made under section
113E. (3)
The
electoral commissioner must make the register available
for
public inspection without fee. 113G
Review of decisions A
person who
is given, or
is entitled to
be given, an
information notice about a decision under
this division has a right to
appeal against
the decision under
the Electoral Act
1992, part 11, division 20, as if the
decision were a decision to which section
277(4)(b) or 278(2) of that Act applied. Division 2
Disclosure periods Subdivision
1 Disclosure period for candidates
114 Disclosure period for candidates who
were previously candidates in a local government
election (1) This section applies to a candidate
for an election (the current election
) if, within
5 years before
the polling day
for the current
election, the
candidate was
a candidate for
another election.
(2) The candidate’s disclosure period for
the current election is the period— (a)
starting— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day for the most
recently held election for which the candidate
was also a candidate; and Page 100 Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 115]
Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the most recently held election was
15
March, the disclosure period starts at the beginning of
15
April. (b) ending— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day for the
current election. Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the current election was 31 March,
the
disclosure period ends at the end of 30 April. 115
Disclosure period—other candidates
(1) This section
applies to
a candidate for
an election if
section 114 does not apply to the
candidate. (2) The candidate’s disclosure period
for the election
is the period—
(a) starting on the day the first of the
following happens or, if they happen at the same time, when
they happen— (i) the person
announces the
person is
to be a
candidate in the election;
(ii) the person
nominates as a candidate in the election; and
(b) ending— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day for the
election. Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the current election was 31 March,
the
disclosure period ends at the end of 30 April. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 101
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 116] Subdivision
2 Disclosure period for groups of
candidates 116
Disclosure period for groups of
candidates The disclosure period, for an election
(the current election ),
for
a group of candidates is the period— (a)
starting— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day
for the most
recently held
quadrennial elections;
and Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the most recently held quadrennial
election was 15 March, the disclosure period
starts at the beginning of 15 April. (b)
ending— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day for the
current election. Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the current election was 31 March,
the
disclosure period ends at the end of 30 April. Division 3
Disclosure by candidates 117
Gifts
to candidates (1) Subsection (2)
applies if,
during a
candidate’s disclosure period for an
election, the candidate receives a gift of a value
equal to or more than $500.
Page
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Local
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funding and financial disclosure [s 117]
(2) The candidate
must give
the electoral commission a
return about the gift
on or before the disclosure date for the return.
(3) Each return must— (a)
be
in the approved form; and (b) state the
relevant details for the gift. (4)
Also, the candidate must, within the
required period for the election, give
the electoral commission a
return in
the approved form, stating—
(a) if the
candidate received
gifts during
the disclosure period—
(i) the total
value of
all gifts received
during the
disclosure period; and (ii)
the
number of entities that gave the gifts; or (b)
otherwise—that no
gifts were
received during
the disclosure period. (5)
For
subsection (1), the value of a gift is taken to include the
value of all other gifts previously given to
the candidate by the same entity during the candidate’s
disclosure period. (6) A candidate
need not
comply with
this section
if the candidate— (a)
gives a
return, in
the approved form,
to the electoral
commission before
making the
declaration of
office under the
Local Government Act 2009
,
section 169 and the return states the candidate—
(i) does not expect to receive gifts in
the candidate’s disclosure period for the election after
giving the return; and (ii)
will give
returns under
this section
if gifts are
received during
the candidate’s disclosure period
for
the election after giving the return; and (b)
does
not receive gifts during the candidate’s disclosure
period for the election after giving the
return. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
103
Not authorised —indicative
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 118] (7)
If the electoral
commission receives
a return under
subsection (2) from
a candidate who
is successful in
an election, the
electoral commission must
give a
copy of
the return to the chief executive officer
of the local government for which the election was
held. (8) This section does not apply to a
candidate who is a member of a group of
candidates. 118 Gifts to groups of candidates
(1) Subsection (2) applies if, during the
disclosure period for an election for a group of candidates, a
member of the group, or a person acting on behalf of the group,
receives a gift of a value equal to or more than $500.
(2) The group’s agent must give the
electoral commission a return about the gift
on or before the disclosure date for the return.
(3) Each return must— (a)
be
in the approved form; and (b) state—
(i) the names of the candidates forming
the group; and (ii) the name, if
any, of the group; and (iii) the relevant
details for the gift. (4) Also,
the agent must,
within the
required period
for the election,
give the
electoral commission a
return in
the approved form, stating—
(a) if any
members of
the group, or
a person acting
on behalf of the group, received gifts
during the disclosure period— (i)
the total value
of all gifts
received during
the disclosure period; and
(ii) the number of
entities that gave the gifts; or (b)
otherwise—that no gifts were received by any
member of the group, or a person acting on behalf
of the group, during the disclosure period.
Page
104 Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 119]
(5) For subsection (1), the value of a
gift is taken to include the value of all
other gifts previously given to any member of the
group, or a person acting on behalf of the
group, by the same entity during the group’s disclosure
period. (6) The agent need not comply with this
section if— (a) each candidate who is a member of the
group gives a return, in
the approved form,
to the electoral
commission before
making the
declaration of
office under the
Local Government Act 2009
,
section 169 and the return states— (i)
the
candidate does not expect the group to receive further
gifts during
the group’s disclosure period
for
the election after giving the return; and (ii)
the group’s agent
will give
a return under
this section
if further gifts
are received during
the group’s disclosure period
for the election
after giving the
return; and (b) the group
does not
receive further
gifts during
the group’s disclosure period
for the election
after giving
the
return. (7) If the
electoral commission receives
a return under
subsection (2) from the agent of a group of
candidates, any of whom are successful in an election, the
electoral commission must give a copy of the return to the
chief executive officer of the local government for which the
election was held. 119 Particular gifts not to be
received (1) A candidate for an election, or a
person acting on behalf of the candidate, must
not, during the candidate’s disclosure period for the
election, receive a prescribed gift made to, or for the
benefit of, the candidate unless—
(a) the relevant details for the gift are
known to the person receiving the gift; or (b)
when
the gift is made— Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
105
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 119] (i)
the entity giving
the gift gives
to the person
receiving the gift details of the gift;
and (ii) the
person receiving
the gift has
no reasonable grounds to
believe that the details given are not the correct relevant
details for the gift. (2) A group of
candidates for an election, or a person acting on
behalf of the group, must not, during the
group’s disclosure period for the election, receive a
prescribed gift made to, or for the benefit
of, the group of candidates unless— (a)
the
relevant details for the gift are known to the group or
person receiving the gift; or
(b) when the gift is made—
(i) the entity making the gift gives the
group or person receiving the gift details of the gift;
and (ii) the
group or
person receiving
the gift has
no reasonable grounds to believe that the
details given are not the correct relevant details for the
gift. (3) If a person or group receives a gift
in contravention of this section, an amount equal to the value
of the gift— (a) is payable by the person or group to
the State; and (b) may be recovered by the State as a
debt owing to the local government. (4)
For
this section, the value of a gift is taken to include the
value of all other gifts previously received by
the candidate, group of candidates or person acting on
behalf of the candidate or group, from the same entity during the
candidate’s or group’s disclosure period. (5)
In
this section— prescribed gift means a gift
with a value of at least $500. Page 106
Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 120]
120 Loans to candidates or groups of
candidates (1) Subsection (2)
applies if,
during a
candidate’s disclosure period for an
election, the candidate receives a loan equal to or
more
than $500. (2) The candidate
must give
the electoral commission a
return about the loan
on or before the disclosure date for the return.
(3) Subsection (4)
applies if,
during the
disclosure period
for a group of
candidates for an election, the group receives a loan
equal to or more than $500.
(4) The agent for the group must give the
electoral commission a return about the loan on or before the
disclosure date for the return. (5)
However, subsections (1) and (3) do not
apply to a loan from a financial institution.
(6) Each return given under subsection (2)
or (4) must— (a) be in the approved form; and
(b) state— (i)
the
value of the loan; and (ii) the date on
which the loan was made; and (iii)
the
terms of the loan; and (c) if
the loan was
made by
the members of
an unincorporated association,
include— (i) the association’s name; and
(ii) unless
the association is
a registered industrial organisation—the names
and residential or
business addresses of the members of the
executive committee, however described, of the
association; and (d) if the loan was
purportedly made out of a trust fund or out of the funds
of a foundation, include— Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
107
Not authorised —indicative
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 121] (i)
the
names and residential or business addresses of the
trustees of
the fund or
other persons
responsible for the funds of the foundation;
and (ii) the title or
other description of the trust fund or the name of the
foundation; and (iii) if
the loan is
made out
of a trust
account of
a lawyer or
accountant under
the instructions of
a person who is in substance the
lender—the name and residential or business address of the
person; and (e) if
neither paragraph
(c) nor (d)
apply—the name
and residential or business address of the
person who made the loan. (7)
Also, the candidate or agent must, within
the required period for the election, give the electoral
commission a return in the approved form, stating—
(a) if the
candidate or
group received
loans during
the disclosure period— (i)
the total value
of all loans
received during
the disclosure period; and
(ii) the number of
entities who made the loans; or (b)
otherwise—that no loans were received by the
candidate or group during the disclosure
period. (8) For subsections (1) and (3), the
amount of a loan received by the candidate or
group is taken to include the value of all other
loans previously given to the candidate or
group by the same entity during the disclosure period.
121 Particular loans not to be
received (1) A candidate for an election, or person
acting on behalf of the candidate, must
not receive a
loan of
$500 or
more from
a person, other
than a
financial institution, during
the candidate’s disclosure period
for the election
unless the
candidate or person keeps a record of the
loan. Page 108 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 121]
Not authorised —indicative only
(2) A group
of candidates for
an election, or
person acting
on behalf of the group of candidates,
must not receive a loan of $500 or more from a person, other than
a financial institution, during the group’s disclosure period
for the election unless the group or person
keeps a record of the loan. (3)
The record under
subsection (1) or
(2) must state
the following— (a)
the
terms of the loan; (b) if the
loan was
received from
a registered industrial organisation
other than a financial institution— (i)
the
name of the organisation; and (ii)
the names and
addresses of
the members of
the executive committee, however
described, of
the organisation; (c)
if the loan
was received from
an unincorporated association— (i)
the
name of the association; and (ii)
unless the
association is
a registered industrial organisation—the names
and residential or
business addresses of the members of the
executive committee, however described, of the
association; (d) if the
loan was
paid out
of a trust
fund or
out of the
funds of a foundation— (i)
the
names and residential or business addresses of the
trustees of
the fund or
other persons
responsible for the funds of the foundation;
and (ii) the title or
other description of the trust fund, or the name of the
foundation; and (iii) if
the loan is
made out
of a trust
account of
a lawyer or
accountant under
the instructions of
a person who is in substance the
lender—the name and residential or business address of the
lender; (e) if none of paragraphs (b), (c) and (d)
applies—the name and residential or business address of the
person. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
109
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 122] (4)
If a candidate, group
or person receives
a loan in
contravention of subsection (1) or (2), an
amount equal to the amount or value of the loan—
(a) is payable by the candidate, group or
person to the State; and (b)
may
be recovered by the State from the candidate, group
or
person as a debt. (5) For subsections (1) and (2), the
amount of a loan received by the candidate or
group is taken to include the value of all other
loans previously given to the candidate or
group by the same entity during the disclosure period.
122 Electoral commission to give reminder
notice to candidates (1)
The electoral commission must,
within 10
weeks after
the polling day, or if no poll is
conducted, the day a poll would otherwise have
been required to be conducted under this Act, for an election,
give written notice to a candidate or agent for a group of
candidates if— (a) the candidate has not given the return
the candidate is required, under
section 117(4) or
120(7), to
give the
electoral commission for the election;
or (b) the agent has not given the return the
agent is required, under section
118(4) or 120(7), to
give the
electoral commission for
the election. (2) The notice must state—
(a) the candidate
or agent is
required to
give the
return under section
117, 118 or 120; and (b) the following
provisions, or a general outline of them, to the extent they
may be relevant to the candidate— •
the Local Government Act
2009 ,
section 153 and
the City of Brisbane Act 2010
,
section 153 • section 117 •
section 118 Page 110
Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 123]
• section 120 •
section 195 •
section 197. (3)
To
remove any doubt, it is declared that— (a)
this
section does not apply because of subsection (1)(a)
if,
under section 117(6), the candidate is not required to
give
the return; and (b) this section does not apply because of
subsection (1)(b) if, under section 118(6), the agent is not
required to give the return. Division 4
Disclosure by third parties
123 Definition for division
In
this division— third party , for an
election, means any entity other than— (a)
a
political party, an associated entity or a candidate; or
(b) persons appointed
to form a
committee to
help the
election campaign
of a candidate
who has been
nominated for
election by
the registered officer
of a registered
political party, if the committee is recognised by
the political party
as forming part
of the political
party; or (c)
a person who
is a member
of a committee
for the election
of a candidate
or members of
a group of
candidates for the election.
124 Third party expenditure for political
activity (1) This section applies to a third party
for an election if— (a) the third party incurs expenditure for
a political activity relating to the election during the
disclosure period for the election; and Current as at
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funding and financial disclosure [s 124]
Not authorised —indicative
only (b) the amount of
the expenditure is $500 or more. (2)
The
third party must, for each amount of expenditure incurred
during the disclosure period, give the
electoral commission a return on or before the disclosure
date for the return. (3) Each return
must— (a) be in the approved form; and
(b) state— (i)
the total value
of the expenditure to
which the
return relates; and (ii)
when
the expenditure was incurred; and (iii)
the
particular purpose of the expenditure. (4)
For
subsection (1)— (a) each amount of expenditure incurred by
the third party is taken to include any amounts previously
incurred by the third party
for a political
activity relating
to the election
during the
disclosure period
for the election;
and (b) an amount of
expenditure incurred by the third party for a
political activity
relating to
2 or more
elections is
taken to have been incurred by the third
party for each of the elections. (5)
In
this section— disclosure period , for an
election, means the period— (a)
starting— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—on the day after the day the
returning officer
publishes notice
of the election in a
newspaper under section 25; and (b)
ending— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or Page 112 Current as at
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(ii) if a day is not
prescribed—at 6p.m. on the polling day for the
election. Not authorised —indicative only
125 Gifts received by third parties to
enable expenditure for political activity (1)
This
section applies— (a) to a gift— (i)
intended by the person who gives it to be
used by the person who
receives it
(the receiver
), either wholly
or in part,
to enable the
receiver to
incur expenditure for
a political purpose or to reimburse the receiver for
incurring expenditure for a political purpose;
and (ii) the value of
which is $500 or more; and (b) if a third party
for an election— (i) receives the
gift during
the disclosure period
for the election; and (ii)
applies the
gift, either
wholly or
in part, to
a political activity relating to the
election. (2) The third party who receives the gift
must give the electoral commission a return about the gift on
or before the disclosure date for the return.
(3) Each return must— (a)
be
in the approved form; and (b) state the
relevant details for the gift. (4)
For subsection (1)(a)(ii), the
value of
the gift is
taken to
include the value of all other gifts
previously given to the third party by the
same entity during the disclosure period. (5)
In
this section— disclosure period
, for an
election (the
current election
), means the period— (a)
starting— Current as at
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 126] (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—30 days after the polling day
for the most
recently held
quadrennial elections;
and Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the most recently held quadrennial
election was 15 March, the disclosure period
starts at the beginning of 15 April. (b)
ending— (i)
on the day
prescribed by
regulation for
this subparagraph;
or (ii) if a day is not
prescribed—ending 30 days after the polling day for
the current election. Example for subparagraph (ii)—
If
the polling day for the current election was 31 March,
the
disclosure period ends at the end of 30 April. Division 5
Operation of accounts 126
Requirement for candidate to operate
dedicated account (1) This section applies to a candidate
for an election. (2) The candidate
must operate
an account with
a financial institution if
the candidate receives an amount mentioned in subsection (3)
or pays an amount mentioned in subsection (4). (3)
All
amounts received by the candidate, or a person on behalf
of
the candidate, during the candidate’s disclosure period for
the election for
the conduct of
the candidate’s election
campaign, including all gifts received by
the candidate for the election, and all amounts received as
loans to the candidate, must be placed in the account.
(4) All amounts paid by the candidate, or
a person on behalf of the candidate, during the candidate’s
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 127]
election for the conduct of the candidate’s
election campaign must be paid out of the account.
(5) The account
must not,
during the
candidate’s disclosure period for the
election, be used other than for receiving and paying amounts
under subsections (3) and (4). (6)
If an amount
remains in
the account at
the end of
the disclosure period, the amount or part
of the amount may— (a) be kept
in the account
for the conduct
of another election
campaign by the candidate; or (b)
if
the candidate was a member of a political party during
the
disclosure period—be paid to the political party; or
(c) be paid to a charity nominated by the
candidate. (7) An amount mentioned in subsection (6)
must not be dealt with other than under that
subsection. (8) The candidate
must take
all reasonable steps
to ensure the
requirements of subsections (2) to (7) are
complied with. Maximum penalty for subsection (8)—100
penalty units. (9) Amounts mentioned in subsections (3)
and (4) do not include amounts received or paid out by a
group of candidates for the election of
which the candidate is a member. 127
Requirement for group of candidates to
operate dedicated account (1)
This
section applies if a candidate is a member of a group of
candidates for an election.
(2) The group must operate an account with
a financial institution if the group receives an amount
mentioned in subsection (3) or pays an
amount mentioned in subsection (4). (3)
All
amounts received by the group, or a person on behalf of
the group, during
the group’s disclosure period
for the election
for the conduct
of the group’s
election campaign,
including all gifts received by the group
for the election, and all amounts received as loans to the
group, must be placed in the account. Current as at
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 128] (4)
All
amounts paid by the group, or a person on behalf of the
group, during the group’s disclosure period
for the election for the conduct of the group’s election
campaign must be paid out of the account. (5)
The
account must not, during the group’s disclosure period for
the election, be
used other
than for
receiving and
paying amounts under
subsections (3) and (4). (6) If an amount
remains in the account at the end of the group’s
disclosure period for the election, the
amount or part of the amount may— (a)
be kept in
the account for
the conduct of
another election
campaign by the group; or (b) if each member
of the group was a member of a political party
during the
disclosure period—be
paid to
the political party; or
(c) be paid to a charity nominated by the
group. (7) An amount mentioned in subsection (6)
must not be dealt with other than under that
subsection. (8) Each candidate who is a member of the
group must take all reasonable steps to ensure the requirements
of subsections (2) to (7) are complied with.
Maximum penalty for subsection (8)—100
penalty units. Division 6 Gifts
register 128 Register of gifts (1)
The
electoral commission must keep a register of gifts for an
election (the gifts
register ). (2) The gifts
register must include the following— (a)
all
returns given to the electoral commission under this
part; Page 116
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funding and financial disclosure [s 129]
(b) applications made
to the electoral
commission under
section 132; (c)
copies of information given by the electoral
commission under section 130(2); (d)
statutory declarations given to the
electoral commission under section 130(5);
(e) copies of
notices given
by the electoral
commission under section
131(3); (f) particulars given
to the electoral
commission after
a request made under section
131(3); (g) notices given
to the electoral
commission under
section 198(2). 129
Access to gifts register (1)
The electoral commission must
ensure that
the public may
inspect the gifts register—
(a) at the commission’s public office;
and (b) on the commission’s website.
(2) A person must not knowingly disclose
information obtained from the register if it is not a true
copy, or a fair summary, of particulars in
the register. Maximum penalty for subsection (2)—20
penalty units. 130 Queries on contents of gifts
register (1) A person
who suspects or
believes, on
reasonable grounds,
that
a return given to the electoral commission under this part
has
an error or omission may, in writing, inform the electoral
commission of the suspicion or
belief. (2) The electoral
commission must
immediately, after
being informed
under subsection
(1), take reasonable steps
to inform, in writing, the person who
gave the return about the suspicion or belief.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 130A] (3)
The person who
gave the
return must,
within 30
days after
being informed
under subsection
(2), establish whether
the return should be amended to make it a
true record of fact. (4) If the person
establishes that the return should be amended, the
person must
apply, under
section 132, to
the electoral commission to
amend the
return to
correct the
error or
omission. (5)
If the person
establishes the
return does
not need to
be amended, the person must—
(a) complete a
statutory declaration to
the effect that
the particulars in the return are a true
record of fact; and (b) give the
statutory declaration to
the electoral commission. Division
6A Authorised officers under pt 6
130A Functions and powers of authorised
officers etc. (1) The purpose
of this division
is to ensure
the electoral commission has
available to it suitably qualified persons who can help the
electoral commission properly deal with issues about compliance
under this part. (2) The functions of an authorised officer
under the Electoral Act 1992
, part 11,
also include
the following functions
(the further
functions )— (a) to investigate
and enforce compliance with this part; (b)
to investigate whether
an occasion has
arisen for
the exercise of powers under this
part; (c) to facilitate the exercise of powers
under this part. (3) For the performance of the further
functions by an authorised officer— (a)
the
authorised officer may exercise the officer’s powers
under the Electoral Act
1992 , part 11, divisions 15 to 18;
and Page 118 Current as at
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funding and financial disclosure [s 130A]
(b) on an application by the authorised
officer, a magistrate may issue a warrant for a place under
section 336 of that Act only if
the magistrate is
satisfied there
are reasonable grounds for
suspecting— (i) there is a particular thing or
activity (the evidence )
that may
provide evidence
of an offence
against this part;
and (ii) the evidence is
at the place or, within the next 7 days, will be at
the place; and (c) the electoral commissioner may decide
a seized thing is forfeited to the State under section 354 of
that Act; and (d) the authorised officer
must comply
with part
11, division 19, subdivision 1 of that
Act; and (e) a person who incurs a loss because of
the exercise, or purported exercise, of a power mentioned in
paragraph (a) may apply
for compensation under
section 367 of
that
Act; and (f) the electoral commissioner, an
authorised officer and a person acting
under the
authority or
direction of
an authorised officer
are each a
designated person
for section 372 of that Act; and
(g) a reference in part 11 of that Act to
an offence against that part is taken to be a reference to an
offence against this part; and (h)
a
person who is given an information notice under part
11
of that Act has a right to appeal under section 374 of
that
Act. (4) In this section— authorised
officer means a person who holds office under
the Electoral Act
1992 ,
part 11,
division 14,
as an authorised officer.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
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funding and financial disclosure [s 131]
Division 7 Miscellaneous Not
authorised —indicative
only 131 Inability to
complete returns (1) If a
person who
is required to give
a return under
this part
considers it is impossible to complete the
return because the person is
unable to
obtain particulars required
for the preparation of
the return, the person may— (a)
prepare the
return to the extent
it is possible
to
do so without the particulars; and
(b) give the return to the electoral
commission; and (c) give the electoral commission a
written notice— (i) identifying the return; and
(ii) stating that the
return is incomplete; and (iii) identifying the
particulars; and (iv) stating the
reasons the person is unable to obtain the particulars;
and (v) if the person believes, on reasonable
grounds, that another person can give those
particulars—stating that belief
and reasons for
it and, if
known, the
name
and address of that other person. (2)
A
person who complies with subsection (1) must not, merely
because of
the omission of
the particulars, be
taken, for
section 195(1), to have failed to comply
with that section. (3) The electoral commission may, by
written notice, ask a person stated in a
notice given under subsection (1)(c)(v) or (5)(e), to
give the
particulars mentioned
in the notice
to the commission, in
writing, within a stated period. (4)
The
person must comply with the requirement. (5)
If a
person required to give particulars under subsection (3) is
unable to obtain some or all of the
particulars, the person must give the
commission a written notice— (a)
stating any particulars the person is able
to give; and Page 120 Current as at
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 6 Electoral
funding and financial disclosure [s 132]
(b) stating that the person is unable to
obtain some or all of the particulars; and
(c) identifying the particulars the person
is unable to obtain; and (d)
stating the
reasons the
person considers
the person is
unable to obtain the particulars; and
(e) if the
person believes,
on reasonable grounds,
that another
person whose
name and
address the
person knows can give
the particulars—stating that belief and reasons for it
and, if known, the name and address of that other
person. 132 Amendment of returns
(1) A person
who has given
a return under
this part
to the electoral
commission may at any time apply to the electoral
commission to
amend the
return to
correct an
error or
omission. (2)
The
application under subsection (1) must— (a)
be
signed by the applicant; and (b)
state the particulars of the
amendment. (3) The electoral commission must—
(a) allow the applicant to amend the
return as stated in the application; and (b)
record in
the gifts register
particulars of
the date and
time
of the amendment. (4) The amendment of a return under this
section does not affect the liability of a person to be
convicted of an offence under section 195(2)
committed before the amendment. 132A
Electronic lodgement of returns
(1) The electoral commission may make
procedures about how a return under this part may be lodged
electronically. Current as at [Not applicable]
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2011 Part 6 Electoral funding and financial
disclosure [s 133] (2)
The
procedures— (a) do not take effect until approved by a
regulation; and (b) must be
tabled in
the Legislative Assembly
with the
regulation approving the procedures;
and (c) must be published on the commission’s
website. (3) If a return under this part is lodged
as provided for under the procedures, the
return is
taken to
have been
given to
the electoral commission.
133 Things taken to be done by political
party (1) This section
applies to
a political party
that is
not a body
corporate. (2)
For
this part, things done by or with the authority of members
or
officers of the party on behalf of the party are done by or
for
the political party. 134 Noncompliance with part does not
affect election (1) A failure of a person to comply with a
provision of this part for an election does not invalidate
the election. (2) Without limiting subsection (1), if a
candidate who is elected at an election fails to comply with a
provision of this part for the election, the failure does not
invalidate the election of the candidate. Page 122
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Part
7 Local Government Electoral Act 2011
Part
7 Disputed results [s 136] Disputed
results Division 1 Disputing local
government elections 136
Local
government election may be disputed under this part
(1) The election of a person under this
Act may be disputed by an application to the Court of Disputed
Returns under this part. (2) The election may
not be disputed in any other way. 137
Who
may dispute an election An election may be disputed by—
(a) a candidate
in the division,
if any, of
the local government for
which the election is held; or (b)
an
elector in the division, if any, of the local government
for
which the election is held; or (c)
the
electoral commission; or (d) a
person who
the returning officer
decided, under
section 28, was not properly nominated for
the election. 138 Requirements for an application to be
effective (1) An application must—
(a) state the facts relied on to dispute
the election; and (b) state the order sought from the court;
and (c) be signed by— (i)
for an application by the
electoral commission— the electoral
commissioner; or (ii) otherwise—the
applicant before a witness; and Current as at
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2011 Part 7 Disputed results [s 139]
(d) if paragraph
(c)(ii) applies—contain the
signature, occupation and
address of the witness. (2) The applicant
must— (a) file the application with the Supreme
Court registry in Brisbane within
7 days after
the conclusion of
the election to which the application
relates; and (b) when filing the application, deposit
with the court— (i) $400; or (ii)
if a greater
amount is
prescribed under
a regulation—that amount.
(3) Subsection (1) does not stop the
amendment of an application. 139
Copies of application to be given to elected
candidate and electoral commission The registrar of
the Supreme Court must give a copy of an application
filed under section 138(2) to— (a)
the successful candidate
in the election
to which the
application relates; and (b)
the electoral commission, unless
the electoral commission filed
the application. 140 Application to court for order
relating to documents etc. (1) An applicant may
apply to the Court of Disputed Returns for an
order requiring
the electoral commission or
a returning officer to give
the court stated documents or other things held by the electoral
commission or a returning officer that relate to
an
election. (2) The court
may make the
order about
an application it
considers appropriate. Page 124
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 7 Disputed
results [s 141] 141
Parties to application (1)
The
parties to an application are the person who filed it and
any
respondent under this section. (2)
The
electoral commission is a respondent to any application
filed by another person under this
division. (3) The successful candidate
in an election
to which an
application relates
is a party
to the application if
the candidate, within
7 days after
receiving a
copy of
the application under section 139, files a
notice with the Supreme Court registry in Brisbane stating
that the candidate wishes to be a
respondent. 142 How application is to be dealt with by
the court (1) The Court
of Disputed Returns
may conduct hearings
and other proceedings for an
application. (2) The court is not bound by
technicalities, legal forms or rules of
evidence. (3) The court
must deal
with an
application as
quickly as
is reasonable in the
circumstances. (4) In giving effect to subsection (3),
the court must use its best efforts to
ensure that— (a) the proceeding begins
within 28
days after
the application is filed; and
(b) the court’s final orders are given
within 14 days after the end of the proceeding.
(5) Despite subsections (3) and (4), the
court must give all parties to the
proceeding at least 10 days notice before it begins the
proceeding. (6)
The rules of
court of
the Supreme Court
may include provision, not
inconsistent with
this division,
about the
practices and procedures of the Court of
Disputed Returns. (7) Without limiting subsection (6), the
rules of court may make provision about
the withdrawal of
applications, the
Current as at [Not applicable]
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125
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2011 Part 7 Disputed results [s 143]
consequences of the death of applicants and
the substitution of applicants in these circumstances.
143 Application for dismissal of
application disputing election (1)
The
electoral commission may apply to the Court of Disputed
Returns for an order dismissing an
application on the ground that there has been excessive delay by
the applicant in relation to the application.
(2) The court
may make the
order on
the application under
subsection (1) that the court considers
appropriate. 144 Powers of the court
(1) Subject to
sections 145 and
146, the
Court of
Disputed Returns may make
any order or exercise any power relating to an application
that the court considers just and equitable. (2)
The
orders may include any of the following— (a)
an order to
the effect that
a candidate elected
at an election is
taken not to have been elected; (b)
an
order to the effect that a new election must be held;
(c) an order to the effect that a
candidate, other than the one elected
at an election,
is taken instead
to have been
elected; (d)
an
order to dismiss or uphold an application in whole or
part. (3)
To
remove doubt, it is declared that the court may order the
opening of a sealed declaration
envelope. (4) However, the
court must
ensure, as
far as is
reasonably practicable, the
secrecy of a ballot is maintained. Page 126
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 7 Disputed
results [s 145] 145
Restrictions on particular orders
(1) The Court
of Disputed Returns
must not
make an
order mentioned in
section 144(2) because of a delay in— (a)
the
announcement of nominations under section 32; or
(b) complying with the requirements of
part 4, division 5, 6 or 7. (2)
Also, the court must not make an order under
section 144(2) (other than an order to dismiss the
application)— (a) because of
an absence or
error of,
or omission by,
a member of the electoral commission’s
staff that appears unlikely to have had the effect that a
candidate elected at an election would not have been
elected; or (b) because incorrect
information an
elector gives
to an issuing officer
is written on a declaration envelope the elector
signed. (3) In deciding
whether the
requirements of
subsection (2) are
met, the
court must
not, if
it finds that
an elector was
prevented from
voting at
an election by
absence, error
or omission, take into account any
evidence of the way in which the elector had
intended to vote. (4) The court
must not
make an
order mentioned
in section 144(2) because—
(a) the names
of candidates were
not stated on
a ballot paper in the
order required by section 55(2); or (b)
a name or
other word
that was
required by
section 55(1)(f) to be printed on a ballot
paper adjacent to a candidate’s name
was not so
printed or
was misspelt, inaccurate or incorrect;
or (c) a name
or other word
that was
not authorised by
section 55(1)(f) was printed on a ballot
paper adjacent to a candidate’s name. Current as at
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146 Restriction on particular evidence and
inquiries (1) In a
proceeding for
an application, the
Court of
Disputed Returns must not
take into account evidence by any person that the person
was not permitted to vote during voting hours for a polling
booth, unless the court is satisfied that, so far as
the
person was permitted to do so, the person did everything
required by this Act to enable the person to
vote. (2) In a proceeding in relation to an
application, the court— (a) may
inquire whether
persons voting
were enrolled
on the voters roll for the local
government or division of a local
government area
concerned and
whether votes
were
correctly treated as formal or informal during the
counting of votes; but (b)
must not
inquire whether
the voters roll,
or any copy
used
at an election, was in accordance with this Act.
147 Copy of final court orders
The
registrar of the Supreme Court must arrange for a copy of
the
Court of Disputed Returns’s final orders to be sent to the
Minister, the electoral commission and the
local government to which the appeal relates as soon as
practicable after they are made. 148
Costs (1)
The Court of
Disputed Returns
may order an
unsuccessful party to an
application to pay the reasonable costs of the other
parties to the application.
(2) If costs
are awarded against
an applicant, the
deposit filed
with
the application must be applied towards payment of the
costs. (3)
If
not, the deposit must be returned to the applicant.
Page
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 7 Disputed
results [s 149] 149
Decisions and orders to be final
A decision of,
or order made
by, the Court
of Disputed Returns that
relates to an application is not subject to appeal
other than an appeal under division
2. 150 Right of electoral commission and
returning officer to have access to documents Unless
the Court of
Disputed Returns
otherwise orders,
the filing of
an application does
not deprive the
electoral commission or a
returning officer of any right to have access to a document
for the purpose of performing the commission’s or officer’s
functions. Division 2 Appeals
151 Appeal to Court of Appeal on question
of law An appeal lies to the Court of Appeal from
any decision of, or order made
by, the Court
of Disputed Returns
only on
a question of law. 152
Time
for appealing The notice of appeal starting the appeal
must— (a) be filed within 7 days after the date
of the decision or order appealed from; and (b)
be
served as soon as practicable on all other parties to
the
appeal. 153 Electoral commission is a party to
appeal The electoral commission is a party to the
appeal, whether or not it is the appellant. Current as at
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2011 Part 7 Disputed results [s 154]
154 How appeal is dealt with by Court of
Appeal (1) In deciding the appeal, the Court of
Appeal— (a) is not
bound by
technicalities, legal
forms or
rules of
evidence; and (b)
may use the
procedures, whether
usual or
otherwise, that
it considers necessary
to enable the
appeal to
be decided quickly and properly;
and (c) has all
the powers given
to it by
the Uniform Civil
Procedure Rules 1999 .
(2) The court must use its best efforts to
ensure that the appeal is heard, and the court’s final decision
is made or order is given, as quickly as is reasonable in the
circumstances. 155 Application for dismissal of
appeal (1) A party, other than the appellant, may
apply to the Court of Appeal for an order dismissing the
appeal on the ground that there has been excessive delay by the
appellant in relation to the appeal. (2)
The
court may make an order on the application it considers
appropriate. 156
Copy
of final court orders The registrar of the Supreme Court
must arrange for a copy of the Court of Appeal’s final orders to
be sent to the Minister, the electoral commission and the local
government to which the appeal relates as soon as practicable
after they are made. 157 Right of electoral commission and
returning officer to have access to documents Unless the Court
of Appeal otherwise orders, the filing of the notice of appeal
does not deprive the electoral commission or a returning
officer of any right to have access to a document
for
the purpose of performing the commission’s or officer’s
functions. Page 130
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Part
8 Local Government Electoral Act 2011
Part
8 Legal provisions [s 158] Legal
provisions 158 Decisions not subject to appeal
(1) If a provision of this Act declares a
decision to be not subject to appeal, the decision—
(a) can not
be appealed against,
challenged, reviewed,
quashed, set aside, or called into question
in any way, including, for
example, under
the Judicial Review
Act 1991 ; and
(b) is not
subject to
any writ or
order of
a court on
any ground. Examples—
1 A person may not bring any proceedings
for an injunction to stop conduct that is authorised by the
decision. 2 A person may not bring any proceedings
for a declaration about the
validity of
conduct that
is authorised by
the decision. (2)
Subsection (1) does not limit section
149. (3) In this section— court
includes a tribunal or another similar
entity. decision includes—
(a) conduct related to making the
decision; and (b) a failure to make a decision.
159 Postal vote presumed valid until
contrary proved If a declaration envelope and ballot paper
to which section 72 applies is received by a returning officer
by post, it must be presumed that section 72(3) to (5) has been
complied with in relation to the declaration on the envelope
until the contrary is proved. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 131
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 8 Legal provisions [s 161]
161 Ballot papers as evidence
In a
proceeding, a ballot paper apparently used at an election
and
identified by evidence as 1 of the ballot papers held by the
electoral commission under
section 102 is
evidence of
the vote or
votes cast
in the election
as recorded on
the ballot paper.
162 Allegations of false or misleading
information or document In
a proceeding for
an offence against
this Act
defined as
involving false
or misleading information, or
a false or
misleading document,
it is enough
for a charge
to state the
information or
document was,
without specifying which,
‘false or misleading’. 163
Evidentiary provisions In a proceeding
for an offence against this Act, a certificate purporting to
be signed by
a member of
the electoral commission and
stating any
of the following
matters is
evidence of the matter— (a)
a
stated document is an application, declaration, notice
or
return given or kept under this Act or the Electoral
Act
1992 , or a copy of it; (b)
on a stated
day, a
stated person
was given a
stated notice, under
this Act. Page 132 Current as at
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Part
9 Local Government Electoral Act 2011
Part
9 Enforcement [s 165] Enforcement Not
authorised —indicative only
Division 1 Failure to
vote 165 Notice about failure to vote
(1) The electoral commission may, as soon
as practicable after an election, send
a notice to
each
elector who appears to
have failed to vote
at the election stating that— (a)
the
elector appears to have failed to vote at the election;
and (b) it
is an offence
to fail, without
a valid and
sufficient excuse, to vote
at the conclusion of the election; and (c)
the
elector may, if the elector considers the elector has
committed the
offence, pay
one-half of
a penalty unit
(the penalty
) to the
electoral commission by
a stated day, not earlier
than 21 days after the elector received the
notice (the
appropriate day
), and, if
the electoral commission receives
the payment by
the appropriate day,
no further steps
will be
taken against
the elector about the
offence; and (d) the elector must— (i)
if the elector
intends paying
the penalty by
the appropriate day—sign
the appropriate form
for payment of the penalty and include
payment of the penalty; and (ii)
if
the elector does not intend paying the penalty by
the
appropriate day—state, in a form included in or with the notice,
whether the elector voted and, if not, the reason
for failing to vote; and (iii) sign
the form and
post or
give
it to the electoral
commission so
it is received
by the appropriate day.
(2) The elector must comply with the
requirements of the notice. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 133
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2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 166]
(3) Subsection (4) applies if—
(a) the elector (the first
elector ) is absent or unable, because
of
physical incapacity, to comply with the requirements
of
the notice; and (b) another elector who has personal
knowledge of the facts complies with the requirements and in
doing so also has his or her signature on the form
witnessed. (4) The first
elector is
taken to
have complied
with the
requirements of the notice.
166 Payments for failure to vote
(1) If the
electoral commission sends
a person a
notice under
section 165 for an election and the person
makes the payment mentioned in section 165(1)(d)(i) to the
electoral commission, the electoral commission must—
(a) accept the payment; and
(b) give the person a receipt for the
payment; and (c) not take any proceeding against the
elector for failing to vote at the election.
(2) In this section— proceeding includes serving
an infringement notice under the State Penalties
Enforcement Act 1999 . 168
Failure to vote (1)
An
elector for an election must not— (a)
fail
to vote at the election without a valid and sufficient
excuse; or (b)
fail
to comply with the requirements of a notice given to
the
elector under section 165; or (c)
when complying
with the
requirements of
the notice, make
a statement the
elector knows
to be false
or misleading in a material
particular. Page 134 Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 168] Maximum
penalty—1 penalty unit. (2) An elector’s
belief that it is part of the elector’s religious duty
not
to vote at elections is a valid and sufficient excuse for
the elector’s failure to vote in a particular
election. (3) An elector
may be prosecuted for
an offence against
subsection (1)(a) only
if the elector
has been sent
a notice about the
election under section 165. (4)
In a proceeding for
an offence against
subsection (1)(a), a
certificate purporting to
be signed by
a member of
the electoral commission’s staff
stating any
of the following
matters is evidence of the matter—
(a) an elector failed to vote at the
election; (b) a notice
was sent by
the electoral commission to
the elector under section 165 on a stated
day; (c) a form mentioned in section 165(1) was
not received by the electoral commission from
the elector by
the day stated under the
subsection. (5) If a form is not received by the
electoral commission from the elector by the
day stated under section 165(1), it is evidence the elector
failed to vote at the election without a valid and
sufficient excuse. (6)
If a
form is received by the electoral commission about the
elector’s compliance with section 165,
statements in the form purporting to be made by—
(a) the elector
are evidence as
statements made
by the elector;
and (b) another elector
under section
165(3) are evidence as
statements made by the other elector.
(7) For the
Justices Act
1886 ,
section 139, the
place where
an offence against subsection (1)(a) is
committed is taken to be the office of the returning officer
for the electoral district for which the
elector was enrolled for the election. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 135
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 169] Division 2
Corrupt and improper practices
affecting local government
elections Not
authorised —indicative
only 169 False or
misleading information (1) A
person must
not give information under
this Act
to a returning
officer or
the electoral commission, including
information in a document, that the person
knows is false or misleading in a material particular.
Maximum penalty—7 years imprisonment.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply
to— (a) a person
giving a
document if,
when giving
the document, the person—
(i) informs the
returning officer
or electoral commission, to
the best of the person’s ability, how it is false or
misleading; and (ii) if
the person has,
or can reasonably obtain,
the correct information—gives the
returning officer or electoral commission the correct
information; or (b) a return required to be given to the
electoral commission under part 6; or (c)
information given
to the electoral commissioner under
section 113D. 170
Bribery (1)
A
person must not— (a) ask for or receive; or
(b) offer, or agree, to ask for or
receive; a benefit of any kind (whether for the
person or someone else) on the understanding that the person’s
election conduct will be influenced or affected.
Maximum penalty—7 years imprisonment.
Page
136 Current as at [Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 171] (2)
A person must
not, in
order to
influence or
affect another
person’s election conduct, give, or promise
or offer to give, a benefit of any kind to anyone.
Maximum penalty—7 years imprisonment.
(3) In this section— election
conduct of a person means— (a)
the
way in which the person votes at an election; or
(b) the person’s nominating as a candidate
for an election; or (c) the person’s
support of, or opposition to, a candidate or a political
party at an election. 171 Assisting illegal
payments A person must not knowingly give an amount
for— (a) a benefit to which section 170(1) or
(2) applies; or (b) the purpose of replacing any amount
that has been spent to give a benefit mentioned in paragraph
(a). Maximum penalty—2 years imprisonment.
172 Improperly influencing electoral
officers A person must not improperly influence an
electoral officer in the performance of the officer’s
functions under this Act. Maximum penalty—35 penalty
units or
1 year’s imprisonment. 173
Obstructing persons A person must
not obstruct the free exercise or performance, by another
person, of a right or responsibility under this Act
that
relates to an election. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 137
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 174]
174 Obstructing electoral officers
etc. A person must not— (a)
wilfully obstruct
or disturb any
proceeding at
an election; or (b)
prevent a scrutineer from entering or
leaving a polling booth— (i)
during voting hours for the polling booth;
or (ii) while votes are
being counted at the polling booth; or
(c) obstruct, intimidate or
wilfully mislead
an electoral officer in the
performance of a function under this Act. Maximum
penalty—10 penalty units. 175 Forged electoral
papers (1) A person must not— (a)
forge an electoral paper; or
(b) use a forged electoral paper knowing
it to be forged. Maximum penalty—10 years
imprisonment. (2) A person
must not
make someone
else’s signature
on an electoral paper,
unless the person is authorised to do so under this Act.
Maximum penalty—10 years
imprisonment. 176 Wilful neglect etc. of electoral
officers An electoral officer
must not
wilfully neglect
or fail to
perform the officer’s functions under this
Act. Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.
176A Confidentiality of information
(1) This section applies to a person
who— Page 138 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 177] (a)
is
involved in the administration of this Act; and (b)
gains information because of the person’s
involvement in the administration. (2)
The
person must not disclose the information to anyone else
other than— (a)
for
the purposes of this Act; or (b)
under the authority of another Act;
or (c) in a proceeding before a court in
which the information is relevant to the issue before the
court. Maximum penalty—40 penalty
units or
18 months imprisonment. Division 3
Offences relating to electoral
advertising 177
Author of election material must be
named (1) A person
must not,
during the
election period
for an election—
(a) print, publish, distribute or
broadcast; or (b) allow or
authorise another
person to
print, publish,
distribute or broadcast; any
advertisement, handbill,
pamphlet or
notice containing election
material unless there appears, or is stated, at its end
the
particulars required by subsection (2). Maximum
penalty— (a) for an individual—20 penalty units;
or (b) for a corporation—85 penalty
units. (2) The particulars are the name and
address, other than a post office box, of the person who
authorised the advertisement, handbill,
pamphlet or notice. (3) Subsection (1) does not apply to an
advertisement that— Current as at [Not applicable]
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139
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 178]
(a) is printed,
published or
distributed on
a car sticker,
T-shirt, lapel button, lapel badge, pen,
pencil or balloon; or (b) is of a kind
prescribed by regulation. (4) Also,
subsection (1) does
not apply to
distributing, or
allowing or
authorising another
person to
distribute, a
how-to-vote card. (5)
In
this section— publish includes publish
on the internet, even if the internet site
on which the
publication is
made is
located outside
Queensland. 178
Distribution of how-to-vote cards
(1) During the election period for an
election, a person must not distribute, or
allow or authorise another person to distribute, a
how-to-vote card that does not comply with
subsections (2) to (5). Maximum
penalty— (a) for an individual—20 penalty units;
or (b) for a corporation—85 penalty
units. (2) A how-to-vote card must state the name
and address of the person who authorised the card.
(3) A how-to-vote card must also
state— (a) if the
card is
authorised for
a political party
or a candidate
endorsed by a political party— (i)
if the register
of political parties
includes an
abbreviation of
the party’s name—the
party’s abbreviated
name; or (ii) otherwise—the party’s
full name
included in
the register of political parties;
or Example for paragraph (a)—
‘Authorised P. Smith, 123 Main Street
Brisbane for [name of political
party] ’ Page 140 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 178] Not
authorised —indicative only
(b) if paragraph
(a) does not
apply and
the card is
authorised for a group of candidates or for
a candidate who is a member of a group of candidates—the
group’s name; or Example for
paragraph (b)— ‘Authorised M. Taylor, 99 King Street Port
Douglas for [name of group]
’ (c) otherwise—the candidate’s name
and the word
‘candidate’. Example for
paragraph (c)— ‘Authorised R. Jones, 88 Queen Street
Brisbane for R. Jones (candidate)’ (4)
For
subsection (2)— (a) the address must not be a post office
box; and (b) if the card is authorised for a group
of candidates or for a candidate who is a member of a group
of candidates, the authorising person must be a member of
the group. (5) The particulars mentioned
in subsections (2) and
(3) must appear—
(a) at the
end of each
side of
the how-to-vote card
that contains print;
and (b) in prominent and legible characters in
print no smaller than— (i)
if
the card is not larger than A6—10 point; or (ii)
if the card
is larger than
A6 but not
larger than
A3—14 point; or (iii)
if
the card is larger than A3—20 point. (6)
During the election period for an election,
a person must not distribute, or allow or authorise another
person to distribute, a how-to-vote card if the person knows,
or ought reasonably to know, that the particulars, or any of
the particulars, mentioned in subsections (2) and (3) on the card
are false. Maximum penalty— Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 141
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 179] (a)
for
an individual—20 penalty units; or (b)
for
a corporation—85 penalty units. Not
authorised —indicative
only 179 Giving of
how-to-vote cards to electoral commission (1)
The
person who authorised a how-to-vote card for a political
party, or for a candidate endorsed by a
political party, for an election must, no later than 5p.m. on
the Friday that is at least 7
days before
the polling day
for the election,
give the
electoral commission— (a)
the
required number of the how-to-vote cards; and (b)
a statutory declaration relating
to any financial
contribution received
from another
political party
or another candidate, whether
directly or
from someone
else
on behalf of the party or candidate, in relation to the
production of the how-to-vote card that
states— (i) who the financial contribution was
received from or on behalf of; and (ii)
the
nature and amount of the financial contribution.
(2) The person who authorised a
how-to-vote card for a candidate or a group of
candidates for an election, other than a candidate
or
group of candidates endorsed by a political party for the
election, must, by 5p.m. on the Friday that
is at least 7 days before the
polling day
for the election,
give the
electoral commission— (a)
the
required number of the how-to-vote cards; and (b)
a statutory declaration relating
to any financial
contribution received from a political party
or another candidate, whether
directly or
from someone
else on
behalf of
the party or
candidate, in
relation to
the production of the how-to-vote card
that states— (i) who the financial contribution was
received from or on behalf of; and (ii)
the
nature and amount of the financial contribution.
Page
142 Current as at [Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 179] Not
authorised —indicative only
Example for subsections (1) and (2)—
If polling day
is Saturday, 25
March, the
how-to-vote cards
and statutory declaration must be lodged
by 5p.m. on Friday, 17 March. (3)
The electoral commission must
reject a
how-to-vote card
received under subsection (1) or (2)
if— (a) the how-to-vote card
does not
comply with
section 178(2) to (5); or
(b) the electoral
commission is
satisfied, on
reasonable grounds,
the how-to-vote card
is likely to
mislead or
deceive an elector in voting under this
Act. (4) If the electoral commission rejects a
how-to-vote card under subsection (3)(b), the
electoral commission must
give the
person who authorised the how-to-vote card
written reasons for the rejection. (5)
A person to
whom reasons
are given under
subsection (4) may,
no later than
5p.m. on
the Wednesday immediately before the
polling day for the election— (a)
revise the how-to-vote card; and
(b) give the electoral commission the
things mentioned in subsections (1)(a) and (b) or (2)(a) and (b)
in relation to the revised how-to-vote card.
(6) Before polling
day, the
returning officer
must ensure
an accepted how-to-vote card is
available— (a) for public inspection for free
at— (i) the place of nomination under section
25; and (ii) if
the place of
nomination is
not also the
public office
of the local
government for
which the
election is
to be held—the
local government’s public office;
and (b) on the electoral commission’s
website. (7) On polling
day, the
returning officer
must, to
the extent practicable,
make an accepted how-to-vote card available for public
inspection at
each polling
booth for
which the
how-to-vote card is relevant.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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143
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 180]
(8) An election is not invalid only
because the returning officer does not comply
with subsection (6) or (7). (9)
In
this section— financial contribution means
a contribution in
the form of
money, property or other valuable
consideration. required number , of how-to-vote
cards, means 12 more than the number of polling booths within
the local government’s area at which the cards are to be
distributed. 180 Unauthorised how-to-vote cards
(1) A person
must not
distribute or
authorise someone
else to
distribute, a how-to-vote card to which
section 179(1) or (2) applies on polling day for an election
unless section 179(1) or (2) has been complied with for the
card. Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.
(2) If, on
polling day
for an election,
an electoral officer
reasonably suspects
a person is
distributing a
how-to-vote card
to which section
179(1) or (2) applies
and that section 179(1)
or (2) has not been complied with for the card, the electoral
officer may— (a) require the person to produce the
how-to-vote card for inspection; and (b)
confiscate any
how-to-vote cards
that have
not been given as
required under section 179(1) or (2). (3)
A
person must not obstruct an electoral officer in the
exercise of the power under subsection (2)(b), unless
the person has a reasonable excuse. Maximum
penalty—20 penalty units. 181 Headline to
electoral advertisements The proprietor of a newspaper must not
print in the newspaper any article, or a paragraph,
containing information that relates to an election
or a matter debated in the election if— Page 144
Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 182] (a)
either— (i)
the
insertion of the article or paragraph is, or is to
be,
paid for; or (ii) any reward or
compensation, or promise of reward or
compensation, is,
or is to
be, made for
the insertion of the article or paragraph;
and (b) the proprietor does not cause the word
‘advertisement’ to be printed as a headline to the article
or paragraph in letters not smaller than 10 point or long
primer. Maximum penalty— (a)
for
an individual—10 penalty units; or (b)
for
a corporation—40 penalty units. 182
Misleading electors (1)
During an election period for an election, a
person must not print, publish, distribute or broadcast
anything that is intended or likely to mislead an elector about
the ways of voting at the election. Maximum
penalty—40 penalty units. (2) A person must
not, for the purpose of affecting the election of
a
candidate, knowingly publish a false statement of fact about
the
personal character or conduct of the candidate. Maximum
penalty—40 penalty units. (3) During an
election period for an election, a person must not
print, publish, distribute or broadcast by
television anything that purports to be a representation of a
ballot paper for use in the election,
if it is
likely to
induce an
elector to
cast an
informal vote. Maximum
penalty—40 penalty units. (4) In this
section— publish includes publish
on the internet, even if the internet site
on which the
publication is
made is
located outside
Queensland. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 145
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 183] Not
authorised —indicative
only 183 Offence for group
of candidates to advertise or fundraise if particular
requirements not complied with (1)
This
section applies to a candidate for an election who is a
member of a group of candidates.
(2) The candidate
must not,
during the
candidate’s disclosure period for the
election, advertise or fundraise for the election
unless sections
41 and 42 have
been complied
with for
the group of candidates.
Maximum penalty—100 penalty units.
(3) The candidate
must ensure
that, during
the candidate’s disclosure
period for the election, a person does not advertise
or fundraise for
the election on
behalf of
the group unless
sections 41 and 42 have been complied with
for the group of candidates. Maximum
penalty—100 penalty units. (4) For subsections
(2) and (3), a person advertises for an election
if— (a) the person
prints, publishes, distributes or broadcasts, or
permits or
authorises someone
else to
print, publish,
distribute or
broadcast, any
advertisement, handbill,
pamphlet or notice containing election
material; and (b) the election material promotes the
election of 1 or more of the members of the group.
(5) For subsections (2) and (3), a person
fundraises for an election if the
person conducts
an activity directed
at collecting amounts to be
used for promoting the election of 1 or more members of the
group. Examples of fundraising activities—
conducting a
social function
at which persons
are charged for
admission, or conducting an auction or a
raffle (6) It is
a defence to
a prosecution for
an offence against
subsection (3) for the candidate to
prove— (a) the candidate
exercised reasonable diligence
to ensure no person acted
in a way that would cause the candidate to contravene
the subsection; or Page 146 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 184] (b)
the candidate did
not know, and
could not
reasonably have
been expected
to know, about the fundraising or
advertising done on behalf of the
group. (7) In this section— candidate’s
disclosure period see section 116. Not
authorised —indicative only
Division 4 Offences
relating to voting 184 Leave to vote (1)
This
section applies if— (a) an employee who is an elector asks his
or her employer, before polling day for an election, for
leave of absence to vote at the election; and
(b) the absence is necessary to enable the
employee to vote at the election. (2)
The
employer must allow the employee leave of absence for a
reasonable period, up to 2 hours, to enable
the employee to vote at the election, unless the absence is
reasonably likely to cause danger or substantial loss to
the employer in relation to the employment
concerned. Maximum penalty— (a)
for
an individual—10 penalty units; or (b)
for
a corporation—40 penalty units. (3)
The employer must
not impose any
penalty or
disproportionate deduction of pay for the
leave of absence. Maximum penalty— (a)
for
an individual—10 penalty units; or (b)
for
a corporation—40 penalty units. (4)
An employee must
not ask for
leave of
absence under
subsection (1) to
vote at
an election unless
the employee genuinely
intends to vote at the election. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 147
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 185] Maximum
penalty—10 penalty units. Not authorised
—indicative only
185 Canvassing in or near polling
booths (1) Subsection (3) applies to a person,
during an election period for an election, at a place that
is— (a) inside a polling booth; or
(b) within 6m,
or a shorter
distance approved
under subsection (2),
of an entrance to a building if— (i)
the
building is, or is part of, a polling booth; and
(ii) a ballot box is
in the building for use in the election or a person is
in the building to cast a vote in the election.
(2) The returning
officer may
approve a
shorter distance
for a pre-polling
booth for the period in which a pre-poll vote may
be
cast in the election. (3) The person must
not— (a) canvass for votes; or
(b) induce an elector not to—
(i) vote in a particular way; or
(ii) vote at all in
the election; or (c) loiter; or (d)
obstruct the free passage of
electors. Maximum penalty—10 penalty units.
(4) If the
returning officer
approves a
shorter distance
under subsection (2),
the returning officer must display a notice at the
pre-polling booth
stating the
shorter distance
and mentioning the offence under
subsection (3). 186 Influencing voting by violence or
intimidation A person must not, by violence or
intimidation, influence a person’s vote at an election.
Page
148 Current as at [Not applicable]
Not authorised —indicative only
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 187] Maximum
penalty—2 years imprisonment. 187
Party
badges not to be worn in polling booths A person must
not wear or display any badge or emblem of a political party
in a polling booth. Maximum penalty—1 penalty unit.
188 Displaying political statements around
polling booths (1) A person must not display a political
statement— (a) inside a polling booth; or
(b) within 6m of the entrance to a
building that is, or is part of, a polling
booth. Maximum penalty—1 penalty unit.
(2) In this section— political
statement means
a statement or
design that
a reasonable person
would associate
with a
political organisation,
cause or belief. 189 Voting if not entitled
A
person must not, at an election— (a)
vote in
someone else’s
name (including a
dead or
fictitious person); or (b)
vote
more than once; or (c) cast a
vote that
the person knows
the person is
not entitled to cast; or
(d) if the person knows another person is
not entitled to vote at the election—procure the other
person to vote. Maximum penalty—3 years imprisonment.
Current as at [Not applicable]
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149
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 190]
190 Offences about ballot papers
(1) A person must not— (a)
wilfully fail to comply with section 70 or
72; or (b) take a ballot paper out of a polling
booth other than in compliance with this Act; or
(c) place in a ballot box a ballot paper
that has not been— (i) given to an elector under this Act;
or (ii) marked by the
elector. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. (2)
A
person must not, without lawful excuse, obtain possession
of
or have in the person’s possession— (a)
a
ballot paper that has been marked by anyone else; or
(b) a declaration envelope that has been
signed by anyone else. Maximum
penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. 191
Failure to post, fax or deliver documents
for someone else (1)
If a
person is given, for delivery or posting to the returning
officer, an application by another person
under section 72, 77 or 81,
the person must
promptly deliver
or post it
to the returning
officer. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. (2)
If a
person is given, for delivery or posting to the returning
officer, a declaration envelope that appears
to be completed, the person must give or post it to the
returning officer, unless the person has a reasonable
excuse. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. Page 150
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Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 192] 192
Secrecy of voting (1)
A
person must not examine a ballot paper used in an election
to find out
the candidates for
whom an
elector has
voted unless required
by a court or authorised under this Act to do so.
Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. (2)
If,
in performing a function for an election, a person has found
out
the candidates for whom an elector has cast a vote, the
person must
not disclose, or
assist in
disclosing, that
fact, unless the
person is required by law to make the disclosure.
Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. (3)
An electoral officer,
or scrutineer, must
not make a
mark, memorandum or
note on
a voters roll
or any other
list of
voters or otherwise— (a)
that
indicates for whom a person has cast a vote; or (b)
that
would enable the officer or scrutineer to know or
remember for whom a person has cast a
vote. Maximum penalty—10 penalty units.
193 Breaking seals on parcels
A
person must not wilfully open or break the seal of a parcel
or
packet sealed under this Act unless the person is authorised
under this Act or ordered by a court to open
or break the seal. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. 194
Duty
of witness in signing declaration envelopes A person
(the witness ) must not sign
a declaration envelope as witness under section 72
unless— (a) the witness is satisfied of the
identity of the elector who signs the
declaration before the witness; and Current as at
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 194A]
(b) the witness has seen the elector sign
the declaration; and (c) either—
(i) the witness knows that the declaration
made by the elector is true; or (ii)
the
witness is satisfied that the declaration is true
because of inquiries of the elector or
otherwise. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units or
6 months imprisonment. Division 5
Offences relating to electoral
funding and financial disclosure
194A Offence about prohibited
donations (1) A person
must not
do an act
or make an
omission that
is unlawful under
section 113B
if the person
knows or
ought reasonably to
know of
the facts that
result in
the act or
omission being unlawful under that
section. Maximum penalty—400 penalty
units or
2 years imprisonment. (2)
An
offence against subsection (1) is a misdemeanour.
194B Schemes to circumvent prohibition on
particular political donations (1)
A person must
not knowingly participate, directly
or indirectly, in a scheme to circumvent
a prohibition under part 6, division 1A about political
donations. Maximum penalty—1,500 penalty
units or
10 years imprisonment. (2)
For
subsection (1), it does not matter whether the person also
participates in the scheme for other
purposes. (3) An offence against subsection (1) is a
crime. (4) In this section— Page 152
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 194C] participate
in , a scheme, includes— (a)
enable, aid or facilitate entry into, or the
carrying out of, a scheme; and (b)
organise or control a scheme.
scheme includes
arrangement, agreement, understanding, course
of conduct, promise
or
undertaking, whether express
or
implied. 194C False or misleading information
relating to determinations (1)
A person must
not give the
electoral commissioner information
under section 113D that the person knows is false
or
misleading in a material particular. Maximum
penalty—400 penalty
units or
2 years imprisonment. (2)
Subsection (1) does not apply to a person if
the person, when giving information in a document—
(a) tells the
electoral commissioner, to
the best of
the person’s ability,
how the document
is false or
misleading; and (b)
if
the person has, or can reasonably obtain, the correct
information—gives the correct
information. (3) An offence against subsection (1) is a
misdemeanour. (4) In a proceeding against a person for
an offence under section 194A, a determination made under
section 113D is taken to be of no effect if the person knew, or
ought reasonably to have known, at
the time of
the relevant act
or omission that
information given to, or used by, the
electoral commissioner under section
113D was
false or
misleading in
a material particular. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 153
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 195] Not
authorised —indicative
only 195 Offences about
returns (1) A person
must give
a return the
person is
required to
give under
a provision of
part 6
within the
time required
by the provision. Maximum
penalty—20 penalty units. (2) A person must
not give a return the person is required to give
under part 6 containing particulars that
are, to the knowledge of the person, false or misleading in
a material particular. Maximum penalty— (a)
if the person
is required to
give the
return as
a candidate—100 penalty units; or
(b) otherwise—50 penalty units.
(3) If a candidate is a member of a group
of candidates and the group’s agent is required under
section 118 or 120 to give a return,
the candidate must
not allow the
agent to
give the
return if it contains particulars that are,
to the knowledge of the candidate, false or misleading in a
material particular. Maximum penalty—100 penalty
units. (4) A person (the first
person ) must not give to another person
who
is required to give a return under part 6 information to
which the return relates that is, to the
knowledge of the first person, false or misleading in a
material particular. Maximum penalty—20 penalty
units. (5) A prosecution for
an offence against
a provision of
this section
may be started
at any time
within 4
years after
the offence was committed.
(6) If a person is found guilty of an
offence under subsection (1), a
court may,
as well as
imposing a
penalty under
the subsection, order the person to give
the relevant return within the period stated in the order.
(7) If a person is found guilty of an
offence under subsection (2), a
court may,
as well as
imposing a
penalty under
the subsection, order the person to pay,
within the period stated in the order, to
the State an amount equal to the amount of the Page 154
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 196] value of any
gifts made to, or for the benefit of, the person and
not
disclosed in a return. 196 Records to be
kept (1) A person
who makes or
receives a
relevant record
for an election
must keep
the record for
at least 5
years after
the conclusion of
the election unless
the record, in
the normal course of
business or administration, is transferred to someone
else. Maximum
penalty—20 penalty units. (2) In this
section— gift see section
107. relevant record , for an
election, is a document or other thing that is or
includes a record about a matter the particulars of
which— (a)
are,
or could be, required to be stated in a return under
part
6 about the election; or (b) evidence that
the giver of a gift intended the gift to be used by the
receiver, either wholly or in part, to enable the receiver to
incur expenditure for a political purpose or to reimburse
the receiver for incurring expenditure for a political
purpose. 197 Obtaining information for
returns A person who is required to give a return
under part 6 must— (a) take all
reasonable steps
to obtain the
particulars required to
complete the return; and (b) complete
the return to
the extent practicable with
the particulars obtained.
Maximum penalty—20 penalty units.
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
155
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 9 Enforcement [s 198]
198 Further information for incomplete
returns (1) This section applies if—
(a) at any
time within
5 years after
the conclusion of
an election, a person who has, under
section 131, made a statement that
a return about
the election is
not complete; and (b)
the
person obtains information or particulars relevant to
the
return that the person was not able to obtain before
completing the return. (2)
The person must
give to
the returning officer
to whom the
return was
given a
written notice
of the information or
particulars obtained. Maximum
penalty—20 penalty units. Division 6 Attempts
199 Attempts to commit offences
(1) A person who attempts to commit an
offence against this part commits an offence.
Maximum penalty—half the
maximum penalty
for committing the offence.
(2) The Criminal Code, section 4 applies
to subsection (1). Division 7 Injunctions 200
Injunctions (1)
An application may
be made to
the Supreme Court
for an injunction
if— (a) either— (i)
a person (the
offending party
) has engaged,
is engaging or proposes to engage in
conduct; or Page 156 Current as at
[Not applicable]
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 9
Enforcement [s 200] (ii)
a person (also
the offending party
) has failed,
is failing or proposes to fail to do
anything; and (b) the conduct or failure constituted,
constitutes or would constitute a contravention of, or an
offence against, this part. (2)
The
application may be made by— (a)
if the conduct
or failure relates
to an election—a candidate or
nominee as a candidate in the election; or (b)
in
any case—the commission. (3) The
court may
grant an
interim injunction pending
determination of the application.
(4) If the electoral commission makes the
application, the court must not
require the
commission or
anyone else
to give an
undertaking about
damages as
a condition of
granting an
interim injunction. (5)
On
consideration of the application, the court may—
(a) if subsection (1)(a)(i)
applies— (i) grant an injunction restraining the
offending party from engaging in the conduct concerned;
and (ii) also require the
offending party to do anything to prevent or
remedy the contravention; or (b)
if subsection (1)(a)(ii)
applies—grant an
injunction requiring the
offending party to do the thing in question. (6)
The
court may grant the injunction if the court is satisfied—
(a) the offending party has engaged in the
conduct, or failed to do the
thing, mentioned
in subsection (1)—whether
or not it
appears to
the court that
the offending party
intends— (i)
to engage again
or continue to
engage in
the conduct; or (ii)
to
fail or continue to fail to do the thing; or Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 157
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 10 Miscellaneous [s 201]
(b) that, if
the injunction is
not granted, it
is likely the
offending party will engage in the conduct,
or fail to do the thing, mentioned in subsection (1),
whether or not— (i) the offending party has previously
engaged in the conduct or failed to do the thing; or
(ii) there is
imminent danger of substantial damage to any
person if
the offending party
engages in
the conduct or fails to do the
thing. (7) The court
may refuse to
grant an
injunction if
the court is
satisfied the
application was
not made to
the court at
the earliest possible opportunity.
(8) The court may discharge or vary the
injunction or an interim injunction. (9)
The powers conferred
on the court
by this section
are in addition to, and
do not limit, other powers of the court. Part 10
Miscellaneous 201
Designated election offences and application
of Criminal Code (1)
An
offence (a designated election offence
)
against any of the following provisions is a crime—
• section 169(1) •
section 170(1) or (2) •
section 171 •
section 175(1) or (2) •
section 186 •
section 189. (2)
The Criminal Code,
chapter 58A
applies to
a designated election
offence. Page 158 Current as at
[Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 10
Miscellaneous [s 201A] (3)
Without limiting
subsection (2), the
chapter applies
to a designated
election offence as if the offence were an offence
under chapter 14, chapter division 2 of the
code. Not authorised —indicative only
201A Proceedings for particular indictable
offences (1) Proceedings for an indictable offence
against this Act, other than a designated electoral offence
under section 201, may be taken, at the election of the
prosecution— (a) by way
of summary proceeding under
the Justices Act
1886; or (b)
on
indictment. (2) However, a
magistrate must
not hear an
indictable offence
against section 194B summarily if—
(a) the magistrate is
satisfied, at
any stage of
the hearing and
after hearing
any submissions by
the prosecution and defence,
that because of the nature or seriousness of the
offence or
any other relevant
consideration the
defendant, if convicted, may not be
adequately punished on summary conviction; or
(b) the magistrate is
satisfied, on
an application made
by the defence, that because of
exceptional circumstances the offence should not be heard and
decided summarily. (3) If subsection (2) applies—
(a) the magistrate must proceed by way of
an examination of witnesses for an indictable offence;
and (b) a plea
of the person
charged at
the start of
the proceeding must be discharged;
and (c) evidence brought
in the proceeding before
the magistrate decided to act under
subsection (2) is taken to be evidence in the proceeding for
the committal of the person for trial or sentence;
and (d) before committing the person for trial
or sentence, the magistrate must
make a
statement to
the person as
required by the Justices Act 1886, section
104(2)(b). Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
159
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 10
Miscellaneous [s 202] (4)
The
maximum penalty that may be summarily imposed for an
indictable offence
is 100 penalty
units or
3 years imprisonment. Not
authorised —indicative
only 202 Local governments
responsible for expenditure incurred by electoral
commission (1) A local
government must
pay the costs
incurred by
the electoral commission for
conducting an
election in
its local government area,
including the remuneration, allowances and reasonable
expenses paid to members or staff of the electoral
commission. (2)
However, local governments may be required
to collectively contribute to
the costs of
the electoral commission for
conducting an election in 2 or more local
government areas using a shared and centrally administered
service. (3) Also, a local government must pay the
costs incurred by the electoral commission in
carrying out
functions relating
to conducting elections generally,
including, for example— (a) the
remuneration, allowances and
reasonable expenses paid to
members or
staff of the
electoral commission; and
(b) the costs
of making appropriate administrative arrangements for
the conduct of elections. 203 Leave to local
government employee to contest local government
election (1) A local government employee who
nominates as a candidate for an election is entitled to a leave
of absence, for a period of not more than 2
months, to contest the election. (2)
A local government employee
may use any
entitlement to
accrued leave
with pay
as leave to
which the
employee is
entitled under subsection (1).
(3) A local government employee is not
entitled to payment of salary or
wages for
any period of
leave taken
under Page 160
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Part 10
Miscellaneous [s 204] subsection (1)
other than any accrued leave with pay that the employee uses
during the period. 204 Inspection of documents
(1) This section applies if a person is
authorised under this Act to inspect a
document. (2) The person may— (a)
inspect the document; and
(b) make copies of, or take extracts from,
the document; free of
charge at
any time when
the office in
which the
document is held is open for
business. (3) The entity (the custodian
)
that has custody of the document is not required to
supply any facility or service to the person in making a copy
of, or taking an extract from, the document. (4)
If
the custodian supplies a facility or service to the person
for making a copy of, or taking an extract from,
the document, the custodian may charge a fee for the facility
or service. (5) However, the
fee must be
no more than
the cost to
the custodian of making the copy or
extract for the person and, if posted to the
person, the postage cost. 205 Persons serving a
sentence of imprisonment For this Act, a person is serving a
sentence of imprisonment only if— (a)
the person is
in detention on
a full-time basis
for an offence against
a law of the Commonwealth or a State or Territory;
and (b) the detention
is attributable to
the sentence of
imprisonment concerned. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 161
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 10 Miscellaneous [s 206]
206 Office of returning officer
(1) A returning
officer must
keep premises
for use as
a public office for an
election. (2) The electoral commission must publish
notice of the address of the public office in a newspaper
circulating generally in the local
government area,
or division of
the local government area, for which
the election is to be held. 207 Approved
forms (1) The electoral commission may approve
forms for use under this Act. (2)
A form may
be approved for
use under this
Act that is
combined with, or is to be used together
with, an approved form under another Act. 208
Regulation-making power (1)
The Governor in
Council may
make regulations under
this Act.
(2) A regulation may be made about the
principles under which the value
of a gift
that is
property is
to be decided
under section
108. Page 162 Current as at
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Part
11 Local Government Electoral Act 2011
Part
11 Transitional provisions [s 210] Transitional
provisions Division 1 Transitional
provision inserted under Sustainable Planning and
Other Legislation Amendment Act
2012 210 Cut-off day for
compiling voters roll for quadrennial election for
2012 Despite section
18(1), a voters roll
for the quadrennial election for
2012 must be compiled at 25 February 2012. Division 2
Transitional provision for Local
Government and Other Legislation
Amendment Act 2015 211
By-elections and fresh elections
(1) This section applies if there is a CEO
returning officer before the commencement for a by-election or
fresh election. (2) The CEO returning officer continues as
the returning officer for the by-election or fresh
election. (3) A person appointed by a CEO returning
officer as an electoral officer before
the commencement continues
as an electoral
officer for the by-election or fresh
election. (4) This Act as in force before the
commencement continues to apply to the conduct of the
by-election or fresh election. (5)
In
this section— CEO returning officer
means a
person who
is a CEO
returning officer
under section 9
as in force
before the
commencement. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 163
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Part 11 Transitional provisions
[s
212] Division 3 Transitional
provision for Local Government Electoral (Implementing
Stage 1 of Belcarra) and Other Legislation Amendment
Act
2018 212 Obligation to repay particular
political donations (1) This section applies if—
(a) a donation was made to a person
(the recipient ) on or
after 12
October 2017
and before the
commencement; and
Note— The Local
Government Electoral (Implementing Belcarra) and
Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2017 was
introduced into the Legislative Assembly on 12 October
2017. (b) under section 113B(3), it would have
been unlawful for the recipient to accept the donation if it
had been made immediately after the commencement.
(2) The recipient
must pay
an amount equal
to the amount
or value of
the donation to
the person who
made the
donation within 30 days
after the commencement. Maximum penalty—400 penalty
units or
2 years imprisonment. (3)
An
offence against subsection (2) is a misdemeanour.
(4) Section 113C
applies in
relation to
a contravention of
subsection (2) as if— (a)
a reference in
section 113C
to accepting a
prohibited donation
were a
reference to
contravening subsection (2); and
(b) a reference in section 113C to the
amount or value of a prohibited donation were a reference
to the amount that was not paid under subsection (2).
Page
164 Current as at [Not applicable]
Schedule Local Government
Electoral Act 2011 Schedule Dictionary Not
authorised —indicative only
section 4 agent
, for a
group of
candidates, means
the agent for
the group recorded in a register of group
agents under section 43. applicant , for part 7,
means a person who files an application. application , for part 7,
means an application about disputing an election
under section 138. approved form
means a
form approved
by the electoral
commission under section 207.
assistant returning
officer ,
for an election,
means a
person appointed under
section 10 as an assistant returning officer for
the
election. associated entity
means an
incorporated or
unincorporated body, or the
trustee of a trust, that— (a) is controlled by
1 or more political parties; or (b)
operates wholly or mainly for the benefit of
1 or more political parties. by-election means an
election to replace a councillor after the councillor’s
office becomes vacant. Note— See the
Local Government Act 2009
,
chapter 6, part 2, division 3 or the City of Brisbane
Act 2010 , chapter 6, part 2, division 3, for when
a vacancy in the office of a councillor must
be filled by a by-election. candidate
means a person whose nomination for election
as a councillor has
been certified
by the returning
officer under
section 27(3)(a). candidate’s
disclosure period , for part 6, see section 106.
conclusion , of an
election, see section 7. councillor , of a local
government, includes the mayor. Court
of Disputed Returns
see the Electoral
Act 1992 ,
section 137. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 165
Not authorised —indicative
only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Schedule cut-off
day , for the voters roll for an election, means
the day to which the
voters roll
for the election
must be
compiled under section
18. declaration envelope means an
envelope— (a) on which
there is
a form of
declaration that
is to be
made
by an elector; and (b) in which the elector’s ballot paper is
to be sealed. deposit ,
in relation to
a nomination, means
the amount deposited under
section 39 for the nomination. disclosure
date , for a return, see section 106.
distribute , a how-to-vote
card— (a) includes make the card available to
other persons; but (b) does not include merely displaying the
card. Examples— 1
A
person distributes how-to-vote
cards if the person hands the cards to other
persons or leaves them at a place for other persons to
take
away. 2 A person
does not
distribute how-to-vote cards
if the person
attaches the cards to walls and other
structures, merely for display. division
, of
a local government area, means a division of the
area
established for the election of councillors or a councillor.
elect includes
re-elect. election means a local
government election. election material means anything
able to, or intended to— (a) influence an
elector about voting at an election; or (b)
affect the result of an election.
election period , for an
election, means the period— (a)
starting on the day when public notice of
the holding of the election is given under section 25(1);
and (b) ending on the close of the poll for
the election. elector means a person
entitled to vote in an election. Page 166
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Schedule
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electoral commission means
the Electoral Commission of
Queensland established under
the Electoral Act
1992 ,
section 7. electoral
commissioner means
the electoral commissioner under the
Electoral Act 1992 .
electoral district
means an
electoral district
under the
Electoral Act 1992 .
electoral expenditure , for part 6,
see section 106. electoral officer
means the
returning officer,
an assistant returning
officer, presiding officer or issuing officer. electoral
paper means a ballot paper, declaration envelope
or other document issued by the electoral
commission under this Act. electoral
roll means an electoral roll kept under
the Electoral Act 1992
,
section 58. emergency means—
(a) a storm, tempest, flood, fire or a
similar happening; or (b) a riot or open
violence. first-preference vote , recorded on a
ballot paper, means the number 1, or a tick or cross, written
in a square opposite the name of a candidate on the ballot
paper. formal , in relation to
a vote, means the vote is recorded on a formal ballot
paper. formal ballot
paper means
a ballot paper
that is
a formal ballot paper
under— (a) for optional-preferential
voting—section 86(7); or (b) for
first-past-the-post voting—section 87(6). fresh
election means
an election of
all the councillors of
a local government that is not a
quadrennial election. gift , for part 6,
see section 107(1) and (2). gifts
register , for part 6, see section 106.
group of candidates —
Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
167
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Schedule 1
A group of candidates
,
for an election, means a group of individuals, each
of whom is
a candidate for
the election, if the group was
formed— (a) to promote the election of the
candidates; or (b) to share in the benefits of
fundraising to promote the election of the candidates.
2 However, a group
of candidates , for an
election, does not include a political party or an
associated entity. group’s disclosure period
,
for part 6, see section 106. how-to-vote
card means— (a)
a
card, handbill or pamphlet, relating to an election for
which optional-preferential voting applies,
that— (i) is or includes— (A)
a
representation of a ballot paper or part of a ballot paper;
or (B) something apparently intended to
represent a ballot paper or part of a ballot paper;
or (ii) lists the names
of any or all of the candidates for the election
with a number indicating an order of voting
preference against the names of any or all of the candidates;
or (iii) otherwise
directs or
encourages the
casting of
preference votes, other than
first-preference votes, in a particular way; or
(b) a card, handbill or pamphlet, relating
to an election for which first-past-the-post voting applies,
that— (i) is or includes— (A)
a
representation of a ballot paper or part of a ballot paper;
or (B) something apparently intended to
represent a ballot paper or part of a ballot paper;
or Page 168 Current as at
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Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Schedule
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(ii) directs
or encourages the
casting of
a vote for
a number of
particular candidates equal
to the number of
candidates to be elected. informal , in relation to
a vote, means the vote is recorded on an informal
ballot paper. informal ballot paper means a ballot
paper that is an informal ballot paper under—
(a) for optional-preferential
voting—section 86(8); or (b) for
first-past-the-post voting—section 87(7). information
notice , about a decision, for part 6, see
section 106. institution means any of the
following— (a) a hospital; (b)
a
convalescent home; (c) a nursing home; (d)
a
home for the aged; (e) a hostel for the aged or
infirm; (f) another place
prescribed by
regulation to
be an institution. issuing
officer see section 12. loan
,
for part 6, see section 106. local government
election means— (a)
a
quadrennial election; or (b) a by-election;
or (c) a fresh election. local government
employee — (a) for
the City of
Brisbane—means a
council employee
under the City of Brisbane
Act 2010 , schedule; or (b)
for another local
government—means a
local government
employee under the Local Government Act 2009
,
schedule 4. Current as at [Not applicable]
Page
169
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Schedule
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only Page 170 mobile polling
booth see section 46(3). nomination
day , for an election, means the day stated as
the nomination day for the election—
(a) in a notice under section 25;
or (b) in a gazette notice under section
38. nominee , for an
election, means a person who has nominated for election as
a councillor at the election. obstruct
includes hinder and attempt to
obstruct. ordinary polling booth see section
46(2). ordinary vote see section
67(1)(a). ordinary voting
hours means
the hours between
8a.m. and
6p.m. on a day. person
acting on
behalf of
a candidate ,
for part 6,
see section 106. person acting on
behalf of a group of candidates , for part
6, see section 106. place
includes a vehicle. political
activity , for part 6, see section 106.
political donation , for part 6,
division 1A, see section 113A. political
party means an organisation or group whose
object or activity, or 1 of whose objects or
activities, is the promotion of the election
of a candidate or candidates endorsed by it, or by a body or
organisation of which it forms a part, to an office
of
councillor of a local government. polling
booth means— (a)
an
ordinary polling booth; or (b) a mobile polling
booth; or (c) a pre-polling booth.
polling day , for an
election, means the day— (a) stated in a
notice under section 35; or (b)
fixed by notice under section 36; or
Current as at [Not applicable]
Local
Government Electoral Act 2011 Schedule
Not authorised —indicative only
(c) fixed by a notice under section 38;
or (d) fixed by a notice under section
53. polling notice means the public
notice given by a returning officer, under
section 35, that a poll will be conducted. postal
ballot election
means an
election for
which the
Minister has
directed, under
section 45, that
the poll be
conducted by postal ballot.
postal vote see section
67(1)(c). postal voter means an elector
who casts a postal vote in an election.
preference vote , recorded on a
ballot paper, means the number 2, or a higher
number, written in a square opposite the name of a candidate
on the ballot paper. pre-polling booth see section
46(4). pre-poll vote see section
67(1)(b). presiding officer , for a polling
booth, means the person who, under section
11, is the presiding officer at the polling booth.
prohibited donor , for part 6,
division 1A, see section 113(1). properly
nominated , for an election, see section 27(5).
public office
, of a
local government, see
the Local Government Act
2009 , schedule 4. quadrennial election
means the
election of
councillors for
local governments that is held in 2012, and
every fourth year after 2012. registered
industrial organisation , for part 6, see section 106.
registered officer
, of a
registered political
party, see
the Electoral Act 1992 , section
2. registered political
party see
the Electoral Act
1992 ,
section 2. register
of political parties
means the
register of
political parties kept
under the Electoral Act 1992 .
relevant details , for a gift,
for part 6, see section 109. Current as at
[Not applicable] Page 171
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only Local Government Electoral Act
2011 Schedule required
period , for part 6, see section 106.
returning officer , for an
election, means a person who under section 9 is the
returning officer for the election. special postal
voter see section 68(5A). third
party , for part 6, see section 123.
value , of a gift, for
part 6, see section 106. voters roll see section
17. voting hours
, for a
mobile polling
booth, means
the hours when electors
may enter the booth to vote at an election. Page 172
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