2023 Election Information
2023 Election Timeline
| 25 August | Close of electoral roll | closed |
| 31 August to 7 September | Councillor and Shire President nominations open | closed |
| 7 September, 4pm | Councillor and Shire President nominations close | closed |
| 15 September | Election packages lodged with Australia Post | |
| 2 October | Commencement of early voting | |
| 21 October | Election Day | |
| A soon as practicable | Notification of results | |
| 24 October | "Swearing in" of new councillors and Shire President, election of Deputy Shire President |
How to Vote
The 2023 Council Election will be held by postal vote.
You can
- return your ballot via post to the electoral commission (please post it in time to arrive prior to election day).
- vote at the Shire of Manjimup Administration Office during opening hours between the 2 October and 20 October 2023.
- vote in person at the polling booth between 8am and 6pm on election day 21 October 2023.
Preferential Voting
Optional preferential voting – Changes in voting 2023
In 2023, local government elections in WA will move to optional preferential voting. It is similar to how voting is done in State and Federal elections.
Under the optional preferential voting system, voters number candidates in the order of their preference. You have the choice to:
- vote for one candidate - by putting a 1 next to their name
- vote for some candidates - by numbering several candidates in the order of your preference
- vote for all candidates - by numbering all the candidates in the order of your preference
Single vacancy elections
Under the optional preferential voting system, a candidate will need the support of a majority of voters to be elected. In order to achieve this, if no candidate has a majority of the first preferences, the lowest placed candidate would be eliminated and their preferences would be distributed to the voter’s next most preferred candidate. This is the same allocation of preferences that occurs in elections for the Legislative Assembly and House of Representatives.
As a result, the elected candidate is the most preferred candidate of a majority of voters.
Multiple vacancy elections
Under the optional preferential voting system, the councillors elected will be representative of a proportion of the vote by achieving a quota of vote. This is the same as elections for the Legislative Council and Senate.
Where a candidate has more votes than this quota, their excess votes will be distributed at a reduced value according to their voter preferences, if any. Likewise, if no candidate has met the quota, the lowest placed candidate is eliminated and their voter preferences are then given to the next most preferred candidate, if any.
Key Information for 2023
