House of Assembly candidates

Information about nominating

House of Assembly candidates may be:

  •  independent (not endorsed by a political party)
  •  endorsed by a registered political party.

Independent candidates

Independent candidates must be nominated by at least 20 persons who are enrolled and qualified to vote in the same district the candidate is intending to contest.

Nominations must be accompanied by a deposit of $1,000 in a banker's cheque (not a personal cheque) or electronic funds transfer (EFT) to the Electoral Commission of South Australia. If EFT is made you must provide a printed receipt showing successful lodgement of payment.

You must lodge the following with the returning officer for the district you are proposing to contest before the close of nominations:

  • A completed nomination form
  • The details and signatures of at least 20 nominators who are electors enrolled in the district you’re intending to contest
  • A $1,000 deposit (banker’s cheque or EFT)

Registered political party endorsed candidates

To nominate as a candidate endorsed by a registered political party, complete a nomination form and return it to your party's registered officer. The registered officer may then lodge nominations directly with the Electoral Commission of South Australia.

Registered officers must submit the following before the close of nominations:

  • all the party's nomination forms
  • a deposit of $1,000 in banker's cheque or EFT for each candidate nominated.

Nomination forms and guides

Nomination kits are available from your local returning officer or from the Electoral Commission SA. Candidates endorsed by a registered political party may obtain their kits from the registered officer of the party.

 

 

Parties and candidates

Candidates

Council elections (local government)

There are a total of 68 local government councils in South Australia. In council elections, people may nominate to be a candidate for mayor, or a councillor representing a single ward or the whole of the council area where it is not divided into wards.

More information

State elections

State election candidates nominate to stand for election to the South Australian Parliament. Eligible candidates try to win seats in either the House of Assembly or Legislative Council.

Currently, there are 47 House of Assembly members who are elected for a 4–year term.

There are 22 Legislative Council members, half of whom are elected at each general election, and serve a term of 8 years.

For a list of all Members of Parliament visit the Parliament South Australia website.

Political parties

Political parties are organisations whose members hold similar political views. In South Australian state elections, political parties have their candidates elected to seats in the House of Assembly and Legislative Council. Individuals can run as independent candidates, without being a member of a political party.

If you would like more details on party registration, see our how to register a political party page.

Party register

 

 

 

Where you can follow us

Funding and disclosure forms

The following forms relate to funding and disclosure provisions in Part 13A of the Electoral Act 1985. If you cannot locate or download a form, please contact the Funding, Disclosure and Registration Branch on 7424 7400.

Please note that returns can be viewed in the public inspection section.

Agent 

Audit 

Disclosure Returns

Donor 

Please note: all donors must complete the 'attachment to donor return – foreign donations' (on the donor return - gifts to relevant entities), regardless of whether they consider themselves foreign donors or not.

Public funding

How to register a political party

To register a political party in South Australia it must be either:

  • a parliamentary party (a political party relying on a member of parliament for eligibility); or
  • a political party whose membership includes 200 members who are on the electoral roll.

To be eligible to register as a parliamentary party in South Australia, it must have either:

  • a member of parliament, which includes any member of the Parliament of South Australia; or
  • a Senator for the State of South Australia; or
  • a member of the House of Representatives chosen in the state of South Australia

An application for registration must be made in writing to the Electoral Commissioner of South Australia and must include:

  • the name of the party and any proposed abbreviation; and
  • the name, contact details and signature of the registered officer and party contact details; and
  • the constitution of the party; and
  • a $500 application fee (non refundable).

If the party is not a parliamentary party, the application must include:

  • a document that sets out the names and addresses (as enrolled) of 200 electors who are members of the party on whom the party relies for the purpose of qualifying as an eligible political party; and
  • declarations of membership (in the form determined by the Electoral Commissioner) completed and signed by the 200 members on whom the party relies for the purpose of qualifying as an eligible political party.

Download the application for the registration of a political party (PDF, 170KB).

For the full instructions and conditions on registering political parties see Part 6 of the Electoral Act 1985.

A registered political party has disclosure obligations under Part 13A of the Electoral Act. Visit our registered political parties page for more information.

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