In a Victorian local Council election there are two types of voters:
- State-enrolled
- Council-enrolled.
You have one vote in Ararat Rural City Council. If you are a state-enrolled voter, that is the enrolment you use to vote.
State-enrolled voters
You must enrol and vote if you:
- are 18 years or older
- are an Australian citizen
- have lived at your address in Ararat Rural City Council for longer than one month.
For more information visit the VEC website
Council-enrolled voters (ratepayers)
Some ratepayers can apply to become Council-enrolled voters in Ararat Rural City Council if they are:
- a property owner, occupier or represent a corporation
- 18 or older
- not a State-enrolled voter within the Ararat Rural City Council.
These are known as Council-enrolled voters.
The rules for Council-enrolled voters have changed ahead of the 2024 Council elections. These changes are explained below.
Owner ratepayers
You can apply to enrol in Ararat Rural City Council if you:
- own property and pay rates in the Council area
- are 18 or older
- are not a state-enrolled voter who lives in Ararat Rural City Council.
This includes:
- Australian citizens who own a property in Ararat Rural City Council but do not live in the area (for example an investment or a holiday home)
- non-citizens over 18 who own a property and live in Ararat Rural City Council.
Up to 2 ratepayers can apply to enrol per property, but each person only gets one vote.
Occupier ratepayers
You can apply to enrol in Ararat Rural City Council if you:
- pay rates for a property that you occupy but do not own
- are 18 or older
- are not a state-enrolled voter.
Up to 2 people per property can apply to enrol, but each person only gets one vote.
Corporations
You can apply to enrol to vote on behalf of a corporation if you:
- are a director or company secretary of a corporation that pays rates (either as an owner or an occupier) in the Council area
- have consented to being appointed as the corporation’s representative
- are not already a state-enrolled voter or council-enrolled voter for the same Council.
Only one person can apply to enrol as the corporation’s representative.
If you meet the criteria
If you meet any of these criteria and would like to apply to enrol, please email us at [email protected] or call us on 03 5355 0200 between the hours of 8:00am and 5:15pm on Monday to Friday.
Once you are enrolled, you must vote for the October 2024 elections and onwards. If you don’t vote, you may get a fine.
Resigning your enrolment
If you don’t want to vote for that property anymore, you can apply to resign your enrolment.
Expiry of enrolment
Occupier ratepayers’ and corporations’ enrolment expires before the next local government general election.
If you want to continue to vote, you must apply to enrol again before the next local Council general election (2028).
The Ararat Rural City Council will send you an invitation when it is time to renew your enrolment.
Owner ratepayers’ enrolment does not expire, but they can apply to resign their enrolment.
More information
To apply to become or check if you are a Council enrolled voter in the Ararat Rural City Council, please email us at [email protected] or call us on 03 5355 0200 between the hours of 8:00am and 5:15pm on Monday to Friday.
For information about Victorian elections, visit the VEC website.
Council by-elections
By-elections before October 2024
If you were a council-enrolled voter in the Ararat Rural City Council at the 2020 local Council general elections and your circumstances haven’t changed, you will be automatically enrolled for any by-elections that take place before October 2024. It is not compulsory for you to vote.
If you weren’t a council-enrolled voter in the Ararat Rural City Council at the 2020 local Council general elections, or your circumstances have changed, you can apply to enrol at any by-elections that take place before October 2024. It is not compulsory for you to vote.
If you want to vote in the next local Council general election in October 2024, you will need to apply to enrol again.
By-elections after October 2024
If you apply to enrol for the local Council elections in 2024, you will remain enrolled for any Council by-elections up until 2028. It will be compulsory for you to vote.
