Voting Entitlements

State-enrolled voters are usually enrolled for State and Federal elections, are Australian citizens and enrol at the place where they live.

You must enrol and vote if you:

• Are 18 years or older;
• Are an Australian citizen; and
• Have lived at your address in Mansfield Shire for longer than one month.

For more information visit the VEC website

Council-enrolled voters are those who own property and who are not registered as a state-enrolled voter in that council. Examples include owners of holiday homes, businesses, or investment properties. Someone who owns the home they live in but is not an Australian citizen can also be a council-enrolled voter.

Ratepayers can apply to become council-enrolled voters in Mansfield Shire if they are:

• a property owner, occupier or represent a corporation
• 18 or older
• not a State-enrolled voter within the Mansfield Shire

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 Mansfield Shire if you:

• own property and pay rates in the council area
• are 18 or older
• are not a state-enrolled voter living in Mansfield Shire

This includes:

• Australian citizens who own a property in Mansfield Shire but do not live in the area (for example an investment or a holiday home)
• non-citizens over 18 who own a property and primary place of residence is in Mansfield Shire.

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

Contact Council for an application to resign your enrolment via email to governance@mansfield.vic.gov.au or call 5775 8555.

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).

Mansfield Shire 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.

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.