Council candidate information

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Key information and updates for anyone considering standing as a candidate for Council in the election on 26 October 2024.

Every 4 years, Knox residents and ratepayers vote to elect Councillors to represent our community. The next Council Elections will be held on Saturday 26 October 2024.

The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) is responsible for managing local Council elections.

What are Councillors

Under the Local Government Act the role of a councillor is to:

participate in the decision making of the Council
represent the interests of the municipal community in that decision making and
contribute to the strategic direction of the Council through the development and review of key strategic documents of the Council, including the Council Plan.

The State Government has provided an overview of the role of Councils and Council Members.

How to become a Councillor

The VEC has further information about how to become a candidate.

The last Council elections were held in October 2020. The VEC website has detailed election results for Knox.

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Councillor policies

Councillors must abide by the Councillor policies including:

Councillor Code of Conduct
Sets out the standards of conduct expected to be observed by councillors while performing their duties.
Councillor Expenses and Support Policy
Outlines the process and standards for councillors regarding claiming expenses, reporting, accountability.
Council Committees Policy
Governs the operation of Advisory Committees, Specific Purpose Committees, Strategic Project Committees and Working Groups. The purpose of Council Committees is to provide advice on the development, implementation, monitoring, review and/or evaluation of programs or activities specified in the Knox Community Plan and Council Plan.

Council documents

The Community Plan and Council Plan are our commitment to making Knox a great place now and into the future.

The Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan is included in the Council Plan.

About the Knox community

Candidates can review demographic facts and statistics about the Knox community and details about each ward.

Baird ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Chandler ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Collier ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Dinsdale ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Dobson ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Friberg ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Scott ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Taylor ward - Ward profile and Population highlights
Tirhatuan ward - Ward profile and Population highlights

About Knox City Council

Knox City Council operates under a functional organisational structure, led by the CEO.

Council maintains:

64 sportsgrounds and major reserves
209 playgrounds
283 council owned buildings
725 km of local roads
918 open spaces
1,242 km of footpaths
40,022 drainage pits

Integrity Agencies

There are several organisations that can provide an external review of complaints relating to a council.

IBAC investigates complaints about corruption or public interest disclosure (‘whistleblower’) complaints.
Local Government Inspectorate reviews complaints about breaches of the Local Government Act.
The Victorian Ombudsman reviews complaints about actions or decisions of a Council, Council staff and contractors. This includes failure to consider human rights or failure to act compatibly with a human right under the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic).
Victorian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission regarding discrimination complaints.

Victorian Electoral Commission for complaints about Council elections.

Meetings

Below is an overview of the meetings that councillors attend at Knox City Council.

Meeting type	Who attends	What the meeting is for
Council Meetings Second and fourth Monday of each month	Councillors Executive Leadership Team Members of the Community	At Council meetings, Councillors make decisions to guide the ongoing operation of Council. The end of month Council Meeting includes public question time which allows the community to ask questions of Council about issues of public interest.
Councillor Briefings First, second and third Monday of each month	Councillors Executive Leadership Team Relevant Council staff	At Councillor briefings, Councillors are briefed on Council issues and projects by Council officers. No decisions are made at Councillor briefings.
Election of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Committee Appointments Once a year in November	Councillors Executive Leadership Team Members of the Community	This meeting is to elect the Mayor and Deputy Mayor (who are elected for a one- or two-year term). Council also considers which Councillors are to be appointed to various committees for the next 12-months.
Internal and external Committees Scheduled by each Committee individually	Councillors Community representatives Council officers who support the Committees	Councillor attendance is determined at the the Election of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Committee Appointments meeting. Currently, there are 13 internal committee and 8 external committees.

How Council Meetings work

Council Meetings are conducted under Council’s Governance Rules.

How Council meetings work is explained further on our website.

See the procedure in action by watching our latest meeting online.

Council committees

At Knox, our 13 Council committees shape our policies, work and information.

One or more councillors may sit on the committee and represent Council. These are additional meetings to the Council Meetings.

Local Council candidate resources

There are a range of sites that provide valuable information for candidates about becoming and being a Councillor including:

Local council candidate resources from the VEC.

The Victorian Local Governance Association (VLGA) has a range of information and resources including information particularly for women’s participation (which is useful for all candidates) at Women | VLGA | Victorian Local Governance Association.

Stand for Council information at the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) website.

Compulsory Candidate Training is available on the Local Government Victoria (LGV) website. The LGV website has a range of other information and resources available regarding Local Government.

Information for candidates and the community about Local government elections 2024 at the Local Government Inspectorate (LGI).

Election campaigning

For information about election campaigns, please visit Council’s Council Elections page.

Key election dates in 2024

12pm Tuesday 17 September - Nominations as a candidate closes
Wednesday 18 September - Ballot draw
Late September to early October - Ballots posted to residents
6pm Friday 25 October 2024 - Voting closes.

For more information visit the VEC page for Knox City Council election.

Council’s Election Period Policy ensures that all candidates have access to the same information from the Council.

From the close of nominations until the election day, a register will be kept of all information requests made by candidates. This register will also include the responses provided. The Council’s Governance team will update this register regularly.

To ensure fairness, all candidates’ information requests will be recorded.

Need help?

Or call our Customer Service team on 9298 8000.

Council candidate information

What are Councillors

How to become a Councillor

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