Have Your Say
Greater Geelong City Council’s
Electoral Structure
28 April 2017
CONTENTS
HAVE YOUR SAY ON GREATER GEELONG’S ELECTORAL STRUCTURE ............................. 3
THE PATH TO A NEW ELECTORAL STRUCTURE .................................................................... 4
THE TWO MODELS .................................................................................................................... 6
MODEL 1 ................................................................................................................................. 6
MODEL 2 ................................................................................................................................. 6
SCOPE OF THE CONSULTATION .......................................................................................... 7
HOW TO HAVE YOUR SAY ........................................................................................................ 8
SUBMISSIONS ........................................................................................................................ 8
PUBLIC HEARING ................................................................................................................... 8
REPORT ON THE CONSULTATION ....................................................................................... 8
MODEL MAPS ............................................................................................................................. 9
HAVE YOUR SAY ON GREATER GEELONG’S ELECTORAL
STRUCTURE
The Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) is consulting with the Geelong community about a
new electoral structure for Greater Geelong City Council. A new structure will take effect at the
general election scheduled for October 2017.
The VEC has developed two models (see maps from page 9). Both models follow the Citizens’
Jury’s recommendation for a council of 11 councillors, elected from three three-councillor wards
and one two-councillor ward, with the two-councillor ward in central Geelong.
The VEC is requesting feedback from the public about the two models. Which model do you
think would provide better representation for the voters of Greater Geelong?
You can take part by making a written submission. Submissions can be made via:

the online submission form at vec.vic.gov.au

email to [email protected]

post to the VEC, Level 11, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

fax to (03) 9629 8632.
Submissions must reach the VEC by 11.59 pm on Sunday 28 May.
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THE PATH TO A NEW ELECTORAL STRUCTURE
Why should there be a new electoral structure for the City of Greater Geelong? The answer lies
partly in State legislation.
At the October 2012 council general election, the voters of Greater Geelong elected 12
councillors. Each councillor was elected to represent one single-councillor ward (Diagram 1
shows this structure, with current enrolment numbers and deviations1). In addition, for the first
time, the voters of the whole City directly elected the Mayor.
Diagram 1: current ward structure and deviations (voter numbers as at 17 February 2017)
This was a transitional arrangement. The City of Greater Geelong Act 1993 (which governs the
structure of the Council) specified that there had to be an electoral representation review of the
Council before the next council election, and that there could be no more than 11 councillors,
excluding the Mayor.
From November 2015 to March 2016, the VEC conducted an electoral representation review of
Greater Geelong City Council. Following provisions in the Local Government Act 1989 (LG Act),
the review considered the number of councillors and the electoral structure of the City, but did
not consider the position and method of election of the Mayor. The review included two rounds of
consultation with the Geelong community. On 16 March 2016, the VEC’s final report was lodged
‘Deviation’ refers to the variation between the ratio of voters per councillor in each ward and the average
ratio of voters per councillor overall. The Local Government Act 1989 allows a tolerance of ±10%.
1
Consultation Paper: Greater Geelong City Council’s Electoral Structure
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with the Minister for Local Government and recommended that Greater Geelong City Council
consist of 11 councillors (excluding the Mayor), elected from three three-councillor wards and
one two-councillor ward. The two-councillor ward was located in the northern suburbs and
northern rural area of Geelong.
In April 2016, shortly after the VEC’s final report was released, the State Parliament dismissed
Greater Geelong City Council. Three Administrators were appointed to run the Council until the
next council elections, which were put back to October 2017.
In July 2016, the State Government appointed a Citizens’ Jury to recommend the best future
design of the City of Greater Geelong, including its electoral structure. The Citizens’ Jury’s final
report, released in January 2017, stated:
The citizens jury agreed as a ‘super majority’ on a four ward structure, comprising of 11 councillors in
total. We suggest these wards be divided into rough geographical areas, dependent on the electoral
population of the areas. The proposed wards would encompass the Bellarine coastal region, the
Northern region, suburban Geelong and central Geelong. The preferred distribution of councillors
would be three in each ward, except for central Geelong, which would have two. This distribution
would be dependent on the number of electoral voters in each ward as per current electoral
legislation. It is worthwhile noting that this proposal received more than 90% of jury support.
The Citizens’ Jury reported that this structure would “provide multiple local voices in each ward to
represent the diversity of local needs and interests in each area. We decided on the odd number
of councillors to avoid deadlocks when voting on issues. In addition, we agreed the greater
region needed to be broken up into wards, but fewer wards with multiple members to encourage
collaboration, increase broader representation and greater accessibility for voters to councillors.”2
The State Government supported this recommendation by the Citizens’ Jury, commenting that
the Government had approved the preparation of a Bill to give effect to it. The Government
stated that information about the 2017 council elections, including ward boundaries, would be
provided by the VEC.3
In January 2017, Local Government Victoria wrote to the Electoral Commissioner requesting the
VEC to prepare one or more options for a ward structure having regard to the Jury’s
recommendation. The VEC developed two models and provided them to Local Government
Victoria in March 2017. The Minister for Local Government has now asked to the VEC to conduct
a public consultation process on these two models.
2
3
Geelong Citizens’ Jury Final Report, January 2017, p. 4.
Victorian Government Response to the Geelong Citizens’ Jury, pp. 9, 18, 33.
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THE TWO MODELS
Both models follow the Jury’s recommendation of three three-councillor wards and one
two-councillor ward, with the two-councillor ward covering central Geelong. Both models also
comply with the equality requirements of the LG Act, which require that the number of voters
represented by each councillor must not vary by more than 10 per cent from the average number
of voters per councillor for the council overall. Voter numbers in the models are based on a
voters’ roll compiled on 17 February 2017. In drawing ward boundaries, the VEC allows for likely
population changes to maximise the longevity of the boundaries as much as possible. The VEC
also takes account of geographic communities of interest and, wherever possible, uses clear,
logical features as ward boundaries, as these assist effective representation and the easy
identification of wards.
There are two main difficulties in translating the Jury’s recommendation into ward boundaries.
First, it is not possible to create a ‘suburban Geelong’ ward that includes all of Geelong’s suburbs
and still complies with the equality requirement of the LG Act. In both models, the Geelong urban
area is distributed across multiple wards. Second, the distribution of voters means that the
central Geelong ward necessarily extends beyond the central business district into adjoining
suburbs. Again, this is in order for the ward to comply with the equality requirement established
by the LG Act.
MODEL 1
In Model 1, the wards are more compact and well-defined. The Barwon River and Coppards
Road are clear ward boundaries. The Bellarine Coastal Region Ward captures the Bellarine
Peninsula well, though it also includes Moolap, which might fit better in a suburban Geelong
ward. The Suburban Geelong Ward comprises the part of Geelong south of the Barwon River.
The Northern Region Ward includes the northern rural area and most of the northern suburbs.
The boundary between the Northern Region Ward and the Central Geelong Ward follows the
major thoroughfares of Melbourne Road and Church Street, but also follows more minor roads in
some areas. The boundary follows existing locality boundaries, so does not divide suburbs, but it
might be considered that the suburb of Herne Hill (in Northern Region Ward) has much in
common with Manifold Heights (in Central Geelong Ward), and that it would be undesirable to
place them in different wards.
MODEL 2
Model 2 provides a more literal interpretation of the Jury’s recommendation to create a suburban
Geelong ward. The Suburban Geelong Ward in this model wraps around the central ward and
includes most of the southern suburbs and parts of the eastern and inner western suburbs of
Geelong. The Bellarine Coastal Region Ward covers the Bellarine Peninsula—without Moolap in
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this model. The Central Geelong Ward does not include Moolap, St Albans Park and Newtown,
and so extends further into the northern suburbs than in Model 1. The Northern Region Ward
retains the northern rural area and the northern suburbs of Norlane, Corio and Bell Park.
The main drawback of Model 2 is that the attempt to create a suburban Geelong ward has
damaged the coherence of three of the wards. The Northern Region Ward extends around the
western and southern sides of Geelong to include Armstrong Creek, Mount Duneed, Waurn
Ponds and Ceres. It could be argued that these localities have little direct connection and little in
common with those on the northern side of Geelong. Similarly, the Suburban Geelong Ward
comprises three disparate areas (the southern suburbs, Newtown and St Albans Park/Moolap)
that are separated by the Barwon River. The Central Geelong Ward does not include Newtown,
immediately to the west of the CBD, but does include suburbs further to the west. The ward
boundaries in general are less clear than in Model 1.
SCOPE OF THE CONSULTATION
The VEC is inviting feedback from the public about these two models. Which model do you think
would provide better representation for the voters of Greater Geelong?
Please note that this consultation does not cover the position of the Mayor. The question of how
the Mayor is elected or whether there is to be a directly elected Mayor at all will be decided by
State Parliament.
Also, the consultation cannot consider proposals for different electoral structures or numbers of
councillors from those in the two models. For example, a proposal for single-councillor wards
cannot be considered. The VEC’s brief is strictly based on the models it has drawn with regard to
the decisions of the Citizens’ Jury.
If you have ideas for modifications that may improve the boundaries in either or both of the two
models, please let us know, including the reasons for your suggested changes.
The VEC also welcomes suggestions for ward names. The names must be relevant and specific
to the ward to avoid any possible confusion with other wards. Some popular approaches include
using place names; compass directions; historic buildings; natural features present in the ward;
names of pioneers and former prominent citizens; Aboriginal names; or native flora and fauna.
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HOW TO HAVE YOUR SAY
SUBMISSIONS
Any person or group can make a written submission to the VEC about the two models.
Submissions must be received by the VEC by 11.59 pm on Sunday 28 May. Late submissions
will not be accepted.
Submissions must include the name, address and contact telephone number of the submitter.
Submissions without this information cannot be accepted.
Submissions can be made via:

the online submission form at vec.vic.gov.au

email to [email protected]

post to the Victorian Electoral Commission, Level 11, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC
3000

fax to (03) 9629 8632.
To ensure transparency in the consultation process, all submissions will be available for public
inspection at:

the VEC website at vec.vic.gov.au

the VEC office at Level 11, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne.
The VEC will remove personal information such as address, phone number and signature, if
applicable, from all public copies. However, the name and locality of submitters will be displayed.
Submissions will be screened for offensive content before they are published.
PUBLIC HEARING
There is an opportunity for people and organisations that have made a submission to speak
about their submission at a public hearing. The public hearing will be held at 6.00 pm on
Thursday 1 June in the Kardinia Room, Rydges Geelong, Corner Gheringhap and Myers Streets,
Geelong (enter from Myers Street). If you wish to speak at the public hearing, you must indicate
this in your submission. If there are no requests to speak at the hearing, it will not be held.
REPORT ON THE CONSULTATION
The VEC’s report on the community’s preferred model is scheduled to be published and provided
to the Minister for Local Government on Friday 9 June. The report will be available from the VEC
website at vec.vic.gov.au at the same time as it is provided to the Minister for Local Government.
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MODEL MAPS
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Consultation Paper: Greater Geelong City Council’s Electoral Structure
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Consultation Paper: Greater Geelong City Council’s Electoral Structure
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Victorian Electoral Commission
Level 11, 530 Collins Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
131 832
[email protected]
© State of Victoria (Victorian Electoral Commission) 2017.
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