The City’s elections are conducted as postal elections that are run by the Western Australian Electoral Commission.
Election packages are posted to all electors on the electoral rolls used for the election, approximately three weeks before election day. Each person enrolled to vote on the City’s electoral roll will be issued a ballot package by mail which will provide details and instructions on how to vote.
For local government elections, the City uses two electoral rolls – a Residents Roll and a Non-Residents Owners and Occupiers Roll.
Residents who live in the City and are enrolled to vote in the State or Federal elections for where they live are automatically enrolled to vote (and appear on the Western Australian Electoral Commission’s Residents Roll).
Owners or occupiers of rateable land who live outside of the district or ward in which the property is located may be entitled to nominate two people to vote on their behalf (and will appear on the City’s non-resident owners and occupier Roll.
Enrolments for the non-resident owners and occupiers roll
- Enrolment of non-resident owners or occupiers is not automatic.
- When individuals are applying in their own names either as owners or occupiers, the enrolment eligibility claim form is used.
- When individuals are being nominated by a corporate body as owner nominees or occupier nominees, the application to register a corporate nominee form should be used because it allows for detail to be provided about the corporate body involved.
- Enrolment claims can be lodged at any time however, enrolments for any particular election close 50 days before election day.
Non-resident owner’s eligibility
- Each rateable property may claim up to two owners or owner nominees on the roll.
- If a property is owned by an individual person, that person may be eligible to enrol.
- An individual may only enrol once regardless of the number of properties owned within the City.
- An owner remains on the roll until the property is sold or in the case of owner nominees, either until the property is sold or the corporate body changes its nominees.
Joint owner’s eligibility
- Where a rateable property is owned by more than two persons, two of the owners may be eligible to enrol with the written agreement of a majority of the owners.
- Where a property is owned by a corporate body, the corporate body may nominate one or two people to go onto the roll.
- A corporate body may only nominate two people onto the roll regardless of the number of properties owned in the City.
- The nominees remain on the roll until either the property is sold or the corporate body changes its nominees.
Occupier eligibility
- Each rateable property that is occupied may claim up to two occupiers or occupier nominees on the roll.
- The occupier must have a right of continuous occupation of that property for at least three months from the date of application.
- The applicant is not required to provide proof of this in the first instance but the City may request proof of continuous occupation.
- Where an individual occupies the property he or she may be eligible to enrol.
- Where two or more individuals jointly occupy a property up to two of them may be eligible to enrol (with the written agreement of a majority where there are three or more co-occupiers).
- A corporate body that occupies property may nominate up to two people to go onto the roll.
- An individual may only enrol once regardless of the number of properties occupied and a corporate body may only nominate two people regardless of the number of properties occupied in the City of Joondalup.
- Occupiers and occupier nominees remain on the roll for a period of two elections after their enrolment is accepted and are then taken off the roll six months after the second election. They must then re-enrol if they wish to continue as electors.