2026 state election

Candidate nominations:

• open at 9 am Wednesday 4 November
• close at 12 noon on Monday 9 November for all candidates.

There is a shorter nomination period this year. If you’re an independent candidate, make sure you’re prepared before nominations open.

Independent candidates must nominate in person at the election office of the electorate they’re nominating in. For district (lower house) independent candidates, this will be the district election office. For region (upper house) independent candidates this will be any district election office within your region.

From Wednesday 14 October, Candidate Helper will have:

• nomination forms
• election office locations
• opening hours
• contact information

Registered political parties must lodge the nomination forms for their endorsed candidates directly with us.

More information

• Become a state election candidate

Victoria is made up of 88 districts and 8 regions.

The 88 districts make up Victoria’s lower house of Parliament, the Legislative Assembly. Each district is represented by one Member of Parliament (MP for short).

The 8 regions make up Victoria’s upper house of Parliament, the Legislative Council. Each region is represented by 5 Members of Parliament.

If you’ve moved house since the 2022 state election, you might be voting in a new electorate. If you do move house, it’s your responsibility to keep your enrolment up to date.

Why this is important

When candidates nominate for an election, they nominate for either one district or one region. When you go to vote, you’ll be given ballot papers for the district and region you’re enrolled in.

If you want to find out more about the candidates who want your vote, you need to know which electorate you’re enrolled in. Knowing your electorate also helps you plan where you go to vote, if you want to vote in person. If you do vote in person, knowing which electorate you’re enrolled in can make it faster for you at the voting centre.

More information

• What are electoral boundaries?
• Interactive electoral boundaries map
• Electoral Boundaries Commission
• Parliament of Victoria website

Elections are a fundamental part of democracy in Victoria.

During a state election, we hire up to 25,000 staff for a range of important jobs.

We’re looking for staff from a wide range of backgrounds. In particular want to hear from you if you:

• speak multiple languages
• are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander background
• live with a disability
• are 18-29 years old

Many jobs involve working in a voting centre on election day. There are also jobs in the months before and after election day.

Apply to work at the election

There are strict laws that regulate political donations in Victoria, including:

• who can make a political donation
• the maximum value of political donations
• when you must disclose political donations you make or receive
• a ban on foreign donations.

There have been recent updates to the political donation laws that all political participants should be aware of. Please read our 2026 political finance laws and political donations pages for the details of these changes.

You can start campaigning at any time, even before nominations open.

When you’re campaigning, you must:

• properly authorise your electoral material so it’s clear who is accountable for it. The law about authorisations has recently changed so make sure you are familiar with the new rules.
• follow all non-electoral laws, such as defamation laws
• not distribute material that’s likely to mislead voters into casting their vote incorrectly
• follow all political donation disclosure rules as soon as you publicly declare your intention to become a candidate. You must do this even if you don’t end up nominating.

If you see something you think is in breach of the Electoral Act 2002, please submit a complaint. We’ll investigate and, where appropriate, we’ll let you know the outcome.

More information

• Authorising electoral material
• Become a state election candidate
• Campaigning