Mount Alexander Shire Council and Hepburn Shire Council are among 39 Victorian local councils undergoing electoral structure reviews throughout 2023-24.
The Local Government Act 2020 introduced several changes, including that all metropolitan, interface and regional city councils must now have single-councillor ward electoral structures.
Macedon Ranges Shire Council will not have its electoral structure reviewed as it is considered a rural shire council and its current structure is compliant with the Act. (Hepburn is also considered a rural shire council but it currently has uneven numbers of councillors per ward).
The reviews are conducted by two electoral representation advisory panels appointed by the Minister for Local Government to make a recommendation to the minister on electoral structures for councils under review.
Acting Electoral Commissioner Dana Fleming is a member of one of the two panels.
“Under the Act, these councils must move to single-councillor ward electoral structures,” Ms Fleming said.
“The panels are considering the appropriate number of councillors and wards for each council, the location of ward boundaries and ward names.”
Options for new ward structures in Mount Alexander include an unsubdivided shire with seven councillors, four wards with two councillors each, or eight wards with one councillor each.
Options for new ward structures in Hepburn include an unsubdivided shire with seven councillors, four wards with two councillors each, or seven wards with one councillor each.
Final reports have been delivered to the Minister for Local Government for the 16 councils under review in round two of the program, which includes Mount Alexander and Hepburn.
Determinations will be made for all 39 councils involved in the electoral structures review in time to allow councils and the VEC to prepare for the October 2024 council elections.
