Election nerds are counting the sleeps now to the local government election on this Saturday, September 14, 2024. The normal people are probably only just starting to realise there’s an election on Saturday.
What?
There’s an election on this Saturday, September 14, to vote for your local council members.
Why?
They do this every four years. Democracy is like that, they keep wanting you to vote for things.
Local council looks after things like local roads, footpaths, garbage collection, pools, sporting fields, libraries and so on. While it gets the least amount of attention, it’s probably the level of government that affects you the most day to day, so it is important.
Do I have to?
Yes.
Unless you live in Ward B in Tenterfield Shire (which is Drake Village, Timbara, Sandy Hill, Rocky River – not to be confused with the Uralla Rocky River) – you didn’t get enough candidates, so that ward has been declared, you get the election off.
Uralla’s council election has been declared too, but Urallan’s still need to vote on the referendum to abolish wards and directly elected mayors.
I don’t wanna
You’ll get fined $55 if you don’t vote and don’t have a “sufficient reason” for not voting. It’s not clear what a sufficient reason is: the legislation lists being dead, not being in your ward or council area, and ‘any other reason acceptable to the Electoral Commissioner’, but as a general rule, if you’re too sick to get there, have a car accident, stuff like that, then you don’t have to pay the fine. Not knowing that there was an election on is NOT a sufficient reason.
Can I vote from home?
If you have registered for a postal vote, yes. Applications for postal votes have closed, so if you don’t already have it organised, you will have to go to a polling booth.
People who are low vision can vote by telephone.
Where do I go to vote?
A polling booth. These are usually stationed in community halls, school gyms, and other large and easily accessible places. There are less polling booths than for bigger elections though, best to look up where to go. Click the link for your council to go straight to the polling booth maps on the NSW EC website, or you can use this lookup tool to find your nearest booth. The blue booths are early voting centres.
Armidale Regional Council
Glen Innes Severn Shire Council
Gunnedah Shire Council
Gwydir Shire Council
Inverell Shire Council
Liverpool Plains Shire Council
Moree Plains Shire Council
Narrabri Shire Council
Tamworth Regional Council
Tenterfield Shire Council
Uralla Shire Council
Walcha Council
Important note: Local Government elections are a bit different to the bigger elections, you MUST vote in your council area, there is no absentee voting. So if you live in Glen Innes, you can’t vote in Armidale, you have to vote in Glen Innes.
Which Council area am I in?
If there isn’t a logo on your rubbish bin to tell you, look up your electorate here by entering your address here: https://elections.nsw.gov.au/elections/find-my-electorate
If you’re not sure whether you are enrolled to vote, look up your enrolment here, which will also tell you which Council you are enrolled in: https://roll.elections.nsw.gov.au/NSWLookUp/
Can I vote early?
Yes, but technically you have to be ‘eligible’.
You may be eligible to vote in person before election day at an early voting centre for a local government election if you:
- will be outside your ward or council area on election day
- will be more than 8km from a voting centre (polling place) in your ward or council area on election day
- will be travelling and unable to attend a voting centre on election day
- are seriously ill or infirm, and due to such illness or infirmity will be unable to attend a voting centre
- are approaching maternity
- have religious membership or beliefs that prevent you from attending a voting centre on election day
- are in a correctional centre and prevented from attending a voting centre on election day
- are caring for a person outside of a hospital setting, which prevents you from attending a voting centre on election day
- will be working on election day
- are a silent elector
- are a person with a disability
- believe that attending a voting centre on election day will place your personal safety or the safety of your family at risk.
Staff at early voting centres often don’t ask anymore, or if they do, they just ask if you’re eligible, and you just say ‘yes’. If they ask for a reason tell them you’re working.
Find an early voting centre by clicking above on your council under ‘where do I vote’ – the blue booths are early voting centres.
How do I vote?
There will be instructions on your ballot paper and the staff will tell you – it’s a little different depending what’s going on in your local government area.
The NSW Electoral Commission made a video (below), but here’s the simple version:
> Does your ballot paper just have a list of names with boxes? Then number the boxes in order like you would in a federal election, with a 1 next to the person you most want to be on council, 2 against the next person, and so on. They’ll tell you how many is the minimum number you need to vote for.
>Does your ballot paper have a bunch of columns and a line across the paper, with one box in each column above the line? Ok, you have two choices, either:
- Put a 1 in just one box above the line, and nothing else on the paper. DO NOT put anything below the line. You’ve voted for everyone in that group.
OR - Number the boxes below the line with a 1 next to the person you most want to be on council, 2 against the next person, and so on. They’ll tell you how many is the minimum number you need to vote for. DO NOT put anything above the line. You have voted for all the people you put numbers against.
If you make a mistake you can ask for another ballot paper. If you need help, just ask.
Who do I vote for?
Whoever you want from the candidates on the ballot. You can use the links above under ‘where do I go to vote’ to get to the list of candidates on the NSW Electoral Commission site, or the ones below to go to our wrap on your council which will include some candidate information.
Armidale Regional Council
Glen Innes Severn Shire Council
Gunnedah Shire Council
Gwydir Shire Council
Inverell Shire Council
Liverpool Plains Shire Council
Moree Plains Shire Council
Narrabri Shire Council
Tamworth Regional Council
Tenterfield Shire Council
Uralla Shire Council – no candidates, information on the referendum here
Walcha Council
Happy voting!
See all our coverage for the Local Government elections 2024. Candidates can submit information here and we’ll get it up when we can.