A person who is a candidate for election to an office of a council must lodge the following returns with the Electoral Commissioner:

CAMPAIGN DONATIONS RETURN - all councils including the City of Adelaide

Candidates (for all councils including the City of Adelaide) must lodge a campaign donations return with the Electoral Commissioner.

Candidates must lodge 2 returns:

For a periodic election:

• the first campaign donation return must be lodged with the returning officer in the period between 22 to 28 days after the close of nominations
• the second campaign donation return must be lodged within 30 days after the conclusion of the election.

For any other type of election (supplementary, etc.):

• the first campaign donation return must be lodged with the returning officer in the period between 8 to 14 days after the close of nominations
• the second campaign donation return must be lodged within 30 days after the conclusion of the election.

The return must disclose:

• the total amount or value of all gifts received during the disclosure period
• the number of people who made those gifts
• the amount or value of each gift
• the date on which each gift was made
• details of persons and organisations (donors) providing those gifts.

The campaign donations return need not set out any details in respect of:

• a private gift made to the candidate
• a gift with an amount or value less than $500
• a gift already disclosed in a large gift return

If a candidate is not required to provide any details in a return, the campaign donations return must still be lodged and include a statement to the effect that no gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received.

LARGE GIFTS RETURN - all councils including the City of Adelaide

All candidates (for all councils including the City of Adelaide) must lodge a large gifts return if they receive a gift or gifts from a donor in excess of $2,500.

The Acts prescribe different times that the large gifts return must be lodged, but during the election year, a large gift return must be lodged within 5 days of receipt of the large gift.

The return must disclose:

• the amount or value of each gift received
• details of persons and organisations (donors) providing those gifts
• the date on which each gift was made.

Two or more gifts (excluding private gifts) made by the same person to a candidate during the disclosure period are to be treated as one gift.

A large gifts return need not set out any details in respect of a private gift made to the candidate. A gift to a candidate is a private gift if it is made in a private capacity to the candidate for their personal use and the candidate has not used, and will not use, the gift solely or substantially for a purpose related to the election.

• Large Gifts Return - other councils - LG52 (PDF, 232KB)
• Large Gifts Return - City of Adelaide - LG53 (PDF, 797KB)

Large gifts returns should be lodged with ECSA at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE RETURN - City of Adelaide only

Candidates for City of Adelaide elections must lodge a campaign expenditure return, in addition to any campaign donation return or large gift return.

A campaign expenditure return must be lodged within 30 days of the conclusion of the election and set out all details of campaign expenditure in relation to the election incurred by or with the authority of the candidate.

If a candidate does not incur more than $500 in campaign expenditure, they may lodge a ‘NIL’ return.

The types of expenditure defined as campaign expenditure are set out in section 25(2) of the City of Adelaide Act 1998 and they include items such as:

• the broadcasting of an electoral advertisement
• production and display of an electoral advertisement
• production of material requiring the author or printer of the material to be displayed in accordance with section 27 LGEA 1999
• consulting and advertising agency fees
• production and distribution of electoral material.

Offences

See section 85 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 and section 29 of the City of Adelaide Act 1998. It is an offence to fail to lodge a return within time, to lodge a return containing false or misleading information, or to supply information that is false or misleading to another person for a return. The maximum penalty is $10,000.

Public inspection of returns

The Electoral Commissioner is required to publish all returns within prescribed times on a website maintained by the returning officer. Campaign donation returns and large gift returns disclosed by candidates standing in council election are available on each candidate's online profile.

• View campaign donation returns*

* The above link will take you to our council elections results site. Each candidate's return is accessed via their profile by selecting the blue button beside the relevant donation return.

Records

See section 89 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 and section 33 of the City of Adelaide Act 1988. A person must take reasonable steps to retain all records relevant to a return and keep these for at least 4 years after the date of which the relevant return is required to be lodged. The maximum penalty is $5,000.

More information

• Part 8, ss 22-34 of the City of Adelaide Act 1998
• Regulation 6 of the City of Adelaide (Elections and Polls) Regulations 2010

Disclaimer: The information provided above is general in nature. Candidates and others should refer to the specific wording of the Act and Regulations and seek independent legal or other advice on any issues of interpretation that may arise.

There are certain restrictions placed on advertising during, and outside of, an election period. These are contained within Part 13 Division 2 of the Electoral Act 1985 (the Act).

The Electoral Commission SA is unable to provide advice on the interpretation of these provisions. Therefore,  if you are in doubt about the interpretation,  we recommend you seek independent legal advice.

Enquiries or issues relating to the placement of signs in the public realm (i.e. height of signs, placement etc) should be directed to the relevant council as these matters are dealt with under the Local Government Act 1999.

• Electoral advertisement is defined by the Act as an advertisement containing electoral matter.
• Electoral matter is defined by the Act as matter calculated to affect the result of an election.

Publication of electoral advertisements 

Electoral Act - ss 112(1),(2)

A person must not publish or distribute, or cause or permit to be published or distributed, an electoral advertisement in printed form or through electronic publication on the internet unless:

• the name (being the name by which the person is usually known) and address (not being a post office box) of the author, or the person authorising its publication, appears at the end; and
• if the advertisement is authorised for a registered political party or a candidate endorsed by a registered political party, the party's name or, if the Register of Political Parties includes an abbreviation of the party's name, that abbreviation appears at the end; and
• if the advertisement is authorised for a relevant third party, the relevant third party's name appears at the end; and
• in the case of an electoral advertisement that is printed but not in a newspaper, the name and place of business of the printer, appears at the end.

This does not apply to:

• a car sticker, T-shirt, lapel button or badge, pen, pencil or balloon; or
• an electoral advertisement consisting of a letter or leaflet that carries the signature and the name and address (not being a post office box) of its author and is not printed:
  • by a person who carries on the business of printing or a business a significant part of which involves printing; or
  • by or on behalf of a person who publishes a newspaper, magazine, periodical or similar publication.

How-to-vote cards

Electoral Act - s 112A

• Refer to part 7 of the candidate guide - House of Assembly
• Refer to part 6 of the candidate guide - Legislative Council

Certain descriptions not to be used

Electoral Act - s 112B

A person must not publish or distribute an electoral advertisement or a how-to-vote card that identifies a candidate:

• by reference to the registered name of a registered political party or a composite name consisting of the registered names of 2 registered political parties; or
• by use of the word or set of words containing the word 'Independent'; and
  • the name or abbreviation or acronym of the name, of a parliamentary party or a registered political party; or
  • matter that so nearly resembles the name, or an abbreviation or acronym of the name, of a registered political party that the matter is likely to be confused with or mistaken for that name or abbreviation or acronym; or
• by the use of a word or set of words that could not be, or may not be able to be, registered as the name, or as part of the name, of a political party under Part 6 because of the operation of section 42(3)(b)

unless -

• • the candidate is endorsed by the relevant parliamentary party or registered political party; or
  • the relevant parliamentary party or registered political party has consented to the use of the relevant name or names or word or words.
• a person must not publish or distribute an electoral advertisement or a how-to-vote card that identifies a candidate by use of the word 'Independent' if the candidate is endorsed by a registered party. 

Misleading advertising

Electoral Act - ss 113(1),(2),(4)

A person who authorises, causes or permits the publication of an electoral advertisement by any means (including radio or television) is guilty of an offence if the advertisement contains a statement purporting to be a statement of fact that is inaccurate and misleading to a material extent.

If the Electoral Commissioner is satisfied that an electoral advertisement contains a statement purporting to be a statement of fact that is inaccurate and misleading to a material extent, the Electoral Commissioner may request the advertiser to do one or more of the following:

• withdraw the advertisement from further publication;
• publish a retraction in specified terms and a specified manner and form.

Headings to electoral advertisements

Electoral Act - s 114

If electoral matter is published in written form (whether for sale or without charge) in a newspaper, magazine or other periodical, or in an electronic publication on the internet, the publisher of the matter must ensure the word ‘advertisement’ is included as a headline to each article or paragraph containing the electoral matter.

If the matter is published in a newspaper, magazine or other periodical, the headline must be in letters not smaller than 10 point or long primer.

If the matter is published in an electronic publication, the headline must be in letters of a size that will be readily legible.

Size of electoral advertisements

• Electoral Act - s 115
• Electoral Regulations - reg 16(a)

 No electoral advertisement more than 1 square metre in area can be exhibited on:

• a vehicle or vessel; or
• a building, hoarding or other structure (for example, fences).

If 2 or more electoral advertisements are placed within one metre of each other, and exhibited on behalf of the same candidate or political party, they will be taken to be a single advertisement.

However, if such advertisements are displayed on different surfaces which interface at an angle of 270º or more, then they are not considered to be a single advertisement (see diagram below - click on picture to view in full screen mode).

NOTE: An electoral advertisement more than 1 square metre in area may be projected on a screen at a theatre (including a drive-in theatre).

There is no restriction on the size of advertisements which exhibit the name of a candidate or a political party if they are displayed at or near an office or committee room of that candidate or political party, however they must not be posted within 100 metres of the entrance to a polling booth.

Part 13A of the Electoral Act 1985 allows compliance audits to be undertaken for the purpose of finding out whether participants have complied with the Part.

• Election Funding Audit External Report - November 2023 (PDF 316KB)
• Election funding audit report - November 2020 (PDF, 916KB) 
• State campaign account audit report - August 2019 (PDF, 711KB)