Electoral expenditure
Parties, candidates and other electoral participants are responsible for understanding and complying with the rules for electoral expenditure set out in the Electoral Funding Act and the Electoral Funding Regulation.
This section provides an overview of what parties, candidates and other electoral participants need to understand about electoral expenditure.
The rules set out in the Political donations section in relation to who is responsible for the management and disclosure of political donations and electoral expenditure apply for all electoral expenditure incurred in relation to the election.
Parties and candidates may be eligible to claim a reimbursement of a portion of electoral expenditure after the election, refer to the section Public funding of election campaigns.
For further information, visit the NSW Electoral Commission website or contact us.
On this page
What is electoral expenditure?
Electoral expenditure is expenditure:
- for or in connection with promoting or opposing, directly or indirectly, a political party, or the election of a candidate or candidates, or
- for the purpose of influencing, directly or indirectly, the voting at an election.
Electoral expenditure is expenditure of the following kinds incurred:
- on advertisements in radio, television, the internet, cinemas, newspapers, billboards, posters, brochures, how-to-vote cards and other election material
- on the production and distribution of election material
- on the internet, telecommunications, stationery and postage
- in employing staff engaged in election campaigns
- for office accommodation for any such staff and candidates (other than for the campaign headquarters of a party or for the electorate office of an elected member)
- on travel and travel accommodation for candidates and staff engaged in electoral campaigning
- on research associated with election campaigns (other than in-house research), and
- in raising funds for an election.
Electoral expenditure also includes expenditure incurred in the use or acquisition of any of the following items if they are acquired and disposed within a 10-week period that includes election day :
- a motor vehicle
- motor vehicle accessories
- a vessel or aircraft used for the purpose of navigation
- televisions and radios
- television and radio broadcasting equipment
- electronic equipment for recording sounds or visual images
- photographic equipment
- computers and associated equipment and computer software, or
- office furniture and equipment.
Electoral expenditure includes only so much of the purchase price of the property that is not recovered in the disposal of the property.
What is not electoral expenditure?
Electoral expenditure does not include:
- expenditure incurred substantially in respect of an election of members to a Parliament other than the NSW Parliament
- expenditure on factual advertising of:
- meetings to be held for the purpose of selecting a person for nomination as a candidate for election
- meetings for organisational purposes of parties, branches of parties or conferences, committees or other bodies of parties or branches of parties
- any other matter involving predominantly the administration of parties or conferences, committees or other bodies of parties or branches of parties.
The NSW Electoral Commission issues guidelines to give further examples of what is and is not electoral expenditure. The guidelines are available on the NSW Electoral Commission website.
Making payments for electoral expenditure
Electoral participant incurring electoral expenditure |
Person making payments |
Prerequisites for making payments |
Further obligations of person making payments |
|---|---|---|---|
Political party |
Any person authorised by the party to make payments for electoral expenditure |
Electoral expenditure incurred for the election campaign must be made from the party’s state campaign account, by any person authorised by the party. |
Provide the details of the expenditure to the party so the party can keep complete and accurate records. |
Candidate – party members |
The party agent |
The candidate is registered for the election with the NSW Electoral Commission (refer to the section Registration of candidates and groups). The electoral expenditure must be made by the party agent from the party’s state campaign account |
The party agent must keep a complete and accurate record of all electoral expenditure incurred on behalf of a candidate, because it is separate to any electoral expenditure incurred by the party substantially for the purposes of the election in a particular electoral district. |
| Candidate – not party members | The candidate | The candidate is registered for the election with the NSW Electoral Commission (refer to the section Registration of candidates and groups). The electoral expenditure must be paid by the candidate from the campaign account of the candidate. |
The candidate must keep a complete and accurate record of all electoral expenditure incurred by the candidate. |
Caps on electoral expenditure
Electoral expenditure in connection with an election campaign is capped during the capped expenditure period for the election. Caps on electoral communication expenditure apply to:
- parties
- Legislative Assembly candidates.
It is unlawful for a party, candidate or group to incur electoral expenditure during the capped expenditure period for the election that is in excess of the caps.
What are the expenditure caps?
The expenditure caps applicable to state by-elections are:
Category |
Expenditure cap |
|---|---|
A candidate |
$301,200 |
A party, where more than one by-election is held on the same day |
$75,500 per electoral district |
There are a number of rules that apply which require parties and others to aggregate electoral expenditure with the electoral expenditure of others for the purposes of the expenditure caps:
- The electoral expenditure incurred by a candidate endorsed by a party for a state by-election is to be aggregated with the electoral expenditure of the party and is to be within the candidate’s expenditure cap.
- If a party endorses two or more candidates in an electoral district, the electoral expenditure of those candidates is to be aggregated and is to be within the applicable expenditure cap of one candidate.
What is the capped expenditure period?
The capped expenditure period for a state by-election starts on the day of the issue of the writ for the by-election and ends on election day.
For the 2024 Epping, Hornsby and Pittwater State by-elections, that is from Friday, 27 September 2024 to Saturday, 19 October 2024.
When is electoral expenditure incurred?
For the purposes of the expenditure caps, expenditure is taken to be incurred when the services are provided or the goods are delivered. In particular:
- when the advertising is broadcast or published
- when the electoral material is distributed, or
- the period of employment of election campaign staff.
Even if payments for electoral expenditure are made outside of the capped expenditure period, the expenditure is subject to the caps if the services are provided or the goods are delivered, including the examples above, during the capped expenditure period.
Exemptions from the caps
The following exemptions apply for the purpose of calculating electoral expenditure counted towards the caps for candidates and parties:
- The cost of expenditure incurred on travel and travel accommodation for candidates and staff engaged in electoral campaigning. (Note: this does not apply to expenditure incurred in connection with a motor vehicle, vessel or aircraft decorated with or displaying advertising or electoral material for a candidate or party – which must be included in the calculation of electoral expenditure counted towards the caps).
- The cost of expenditure incurred for office accommodation for a single campaign office for a candidate or a party engaged in an election campaign, including for the campaign headquarters of a party, but only to a maximum amount of $22,800 for the by-election capped expenditure period. (Note: such costs over $22,800 must be included in the calculation of electoral expenditure counted towards the caps).
The amounts that are exempt from the expenditure caps for candidates, groups and parties must still be disclosed as electoral expenditure.