| Parliaments and Local Councils | Legislative Council | House of Assembly | Local Councils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terms of Members of Parliament/Council | 6 years with 3 or 2 Members elected in alternate years, i.e. a periodical cycle of elections. Elections are held on the 1st Saturday in May each year. | Up to 4 years. | All-in-all-out elections every four years. |
| Number of Members | 15 elected from single-member Divisions (changed from 19 in 1998). | 35 elected from 5 seven-member Divisions (changed from 25 in 2024). State and Federal Divisions are identical. |
Varies from 7 to 12 Councillors per Council. 29 Local Councils. 263 Councillors in total. |
| Electoral Legislation | Constitution Act 1934. Electoral Act 2004. |
Local Government Act 1993. | |
| Voting Systems (definitions) |
Partial Preferential. Majority system. Robson Rotation. |
Proportional representation – Hare-Clark system. Partial Preferential. Robson Rotation. |
Proportional representation (Hare-Clark) with Robson Rotation. Partial preferential for Councillors and Optional Preferential and Majority system for Mayors and Deputy Mayors. |
| Enrolment and Voting Eligibility | Same as for Commonwealth. Includes prisoners serving a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than 3 years. |
Persons on the House of Assembly roll plus owners and occupiers not on House of Assembly roll. Voting not compulsory. |
|
| Redistribution Provisions and Frequency | Legislative Council Electoral Boundaries Act 1995. Every 9 years unless 4 Divisions vary by more than 25% from the average divisional enrolment. | Usual practice is to adopt Commonwealth boundaries after each Commonwealth redistribution. | No set provisions. |
| Joint Rolls Arrangements between Commonwealth, States and Territories | Since 1994. Joint Upper House, Lower House and Local Government roll. |
Since 1908. | Since 1994. |
| Funding, Donations and Disclosure Provisions | Legislative Council has expenditure limit in 2018 of $16 500 per candidate and expenditure statement is required. The expenditure limit increases by $500 each year. | No provision. | Limit on all advertising expenditure. Expenditure limit of $8 000 per candidate irrespective of how many positions contested. |
| Interesting and Particular Feature(s) |
Electioneering and how-to-vote cards not permitted on polling day. | Elections by universal postal vote. | |
