Victorian Electoral Commission

The Victorian Electoral Commission (formerly State Electoral Office), or VEC, is the government agency responsible for the running of state, municipal and various non-government elections in Victoria, Australia.[1]

Victorian Electoral Commission
Agency overview
Preceding agency
  • State Electoral Office
JurisdictionGovernment of Victoria
Ministers responsible
Agency executive
  • Mr Warwick Gately AM, Electoral Commissioner
Websitewww.vec.vic.gov.au
Agency IDPROV VA 4196

Independence

Although it is an independent agency, established under Victoria's Electoral Act 2002, the VEC falls under the umbrella of the Department of Premier and Cabinet.[1] The VEC head office is located on level 11, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne, although during the state election there may be as many as 88 offices established throughout Victoria.

The VEC is subject to oversight by the Victorian Parliament's Electoral Matters Committee[2] which regularly holds inquiries into the conduct of public elections and associated matters in Victoria. The Committee was established under the Parliamentary Committees Act 2003[3] and has members from both the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council. In the 57th Parliament of Victoria, elected on 27 November 2010, its members were appointed in the sitting week commencing Tuesday 8 February 2011. In the 59th Parliament, elected on 24 November 2018, members are yet to be appointed.[2]

Functions

State elections

The primary function of the VEC is to conduct Victorian state elections, the last of which was the 2018 state election, which was held on Saturday, 24 November 2018. Prior to 2006, Victorian parliamentary elections could be held any time at the discretion of the government in the last year of their four-year term of office. This has meant that, in practice, the average period between elections had been somewhat less than the maximum four years. From 2006 the Victorian Parliament has fixed terms with the election being held every fourth year on the last Saturday in November. The next Victorian state election is scheduled to be held on Saturday, 26 November 2022.

Municipal elections

Municipal, or local government, elections are also conducted by the VEC in Victoria. Previously there was a system of competitive tendering between the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) and the VEC, but the AEC withdrew. The VEC still submits tenders to each council to run the municipal elections. Municipal elections take place in October every four years. The most recent municipal elections took place in October 2016 and the next elections will be in October 2020.[4]

Non-government elections

Private organisations may hire the VEC to conduct elections for them. These may include board elections.

Liquor licensing polls

In some municipalities (e.g. City of Whitehorse, City of Boroondara) there are areas which require approval of residents for a liquor licence to be granted. In such circumstances the VEC conducts these polls.

Electoral enrolment

The VEC’s Electoral Enrolment Branch maintains the State electoral roll. Unlike all other states (with the exception of Western Australia), the VEC maintains its own roll rather than depending on the Commonwealth roll which is maintained by the AEC. The VEC still receives updates from the AEC to ensure that the Commonwealth and Victorian rolls mirror each other.

The VEC conducts several promotional programs to ensure that electors update their information when their enrolment details change.

Boundary redistributions

The VEC assists the Electoral Boundaries Commission in redistributing state electoral boundaries from time to time.[1] It also performs similar tasks in relation to local government.

See also

References
  1. "About". Victorian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  2. Victorian State Parliament Electoral Matters Committee
  3. Section 9A, Parliamentary Committees Act 2003
  4. https://www.vec.vic.gov.au/Voting/LocalCouncilElections.html
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