Enrolling to vote

In a council election there are two types of enrolment:

1. state-enrolled
2. council-enrolled

You have one vote per council. If you are a state-enrolled voter, that is the enrolment you use to vote and you cannot enrol as a Council enrolled voter.

1. State enrolled voters

If you are enrolled to vote in state elections, you are automatically enrolled to vote in council elections and will receive a ballot pack at your enrolled address. There is nothing further that you need to do. The following links will take you some helpful pages on the Victorian Electoral Commission website:

• If you are not sure if you are enrolled, you can check your enrolment
• If you have moved or your details have changed, you can update your enrolment
• If you have never enrolled, you can enrol for the first time

2. Council enrolled voters

Council-enrolled voters include ratepayers who are property owners, occupiers or corporations. Enrolment in this category is not automatic, you will need to apply to become a council-enrolled voter or you won't receive a ballot pack. There are three different types of Council-enrolled voter.

Owner Ratepayers

You can apply to enrol as an owner ratepayer if you:

• own property and pay rates in the City of Yarra
• are 18 or over
• are not a state-enrolled voter who lives in the City of Yarra

A maximum of two owners can apply to enrol for any one property.

To enrol in this category, download the enrolment form for an owner ratepayer

Occupier Ratepayers

You can apply to enrol as an occupier ratepayer if you:

• pay rates for a property in the City of Yarra that you occupy but do not own
• are 18 or over
• are not a state-enrolled voter who lives in the City of Yarra

A maximum of two occupiers can apply to enrol for any one property.

To enrol in this category, download the enrolment form for an occupier ratepayer

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 City of Yarra
• have consented to being appointed as the corporation’s representative
• are not already a state-enrolled voter or council-enrolled voter for the City of Yarra

A corporation can only appoint one person to represent it at an election, regardless of how many properties the corporation owns or occupies in the council area.

To enrol in this category, download the enrolment form for a corporation owner or occupier.

Silent Voting

If you believe that having your address shown on a voters’ roll places or would place the personal safety of you or members of your family at risk, you can apply to the Council to be a silent voter. This is only necessary if you have enrolled to vote as a Council enrolled voter - persons automatically enrolled as a silent voter on the Victorian electoral roll will not appear on the electoral for Council elections either.

To apply to be a silent voter, download the silent voter request form