City of Ryde (West Ward) Local government by-election: Political participants bulletin No.1
Bulletin No. 1 Issued 30 August 2022
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1. Election date
A by-election to fill a vacancy for the City of Ryde (West Ward) will be held on Saturday, 15 October 2022.
2. Close of rolls
The close of rolls for this by-election is 6pm Monday, 5 September 2022.
To be eligible for election as a councillor, a person must be enrolled either as a resident or as an owner, occupier or ratepaying lessee of rateable land of the City of Ryde local government area by 6pm on the day of the close of rolls.
3. Candidate information webinar
A candidate information webinar will be held on Tuesday, 6 September 2022 from 11am. This webinar will cover key information relevant to candidates including:
Nomination to the Returning Officer to be included on the ballot paper for the election
Registration with the NSWEC before accepting political donations or making payments for electoral expenditure
Ballot paper draw to determine the order of the candidates’ names on the ballot paper
Electoral material (how-to-vote cards) rules and registration
Voting
Counting and results
Scrutineers and candidate workers
To register your attendance for the webinar please email candidates@elections.nsw.gov.au and include your full name and email address. A link to the webinar will be sent out to the email address used to register your attendance prior to the webinar.
4. Nomination lodgement period
The nomination lodgement period commences Monday, 5 September 2022 and closes 12 noon, Wednesday, 14 September 2022.
Candidates and registered political parties can lodge their nomination forms and pay the nomination deposit in person at the Returning Officer’s office. The nomination deposit is payable by either cash, or bank or building society cheque.
Any nomination forms or deposits received after 12 noon, Wednesday, 14 September 2022 will not be accepted.
The Returning Officer’s office address is:
Foundation Park, Building B
Suite 1.02, Level 1
11 Talavera Road
Macquarie Park NSW 2113
5. Registration as a candidate under electoral funding laws
NSW has strict electoral funding laws that regulate the election campaign finances of political parties and candidates at local government elections. Candidates must register for the election before accepting political donations or making payments for electoral expenditure.
Applications for registration are open now and close on Wednesday, 14 September 2022.
Being registered as a candidate for the election is a separate process to being nominated. To have your name included on a ballot paper you must lodge a nomination form and nomination deposit during the nomination period (see item 4 above for details about the nomination process).
Candidates who are not registered must not accept political donations or make payments for electoral expenditure before being nominated. When nominated by the Returning Officer on Thursday 15 September 2022, any nominated candidates who had not registered before being nominated are taken to be registered and from that time can lawfully accept political donations and make payments for electoral expenditure for the election.
Apply online to be registered using Funding and Disclosure Online, the NSW Electoral Commission’s online portal for political participants. Request access today if you don’t yet have it. If you are unable to use Funding and Disclosure Online, PDF forms to be completed and returned by email or post are available on request by emailing: fdc@elections.nsw.gov.au.
The details of registered candidates are included in a publicly available register. Once registered, if your registered details change you must let us know within 30 days using Funding and Disclosure Online.
Enquiries about being registered and the laws that apply to political donations and electoral expenditure should be sent to fdc@elections.nsw.gov.au
6. Registration as a third-party campaigner under electoral funding laws
Third-party campaigners must be registered for the by-election before paying for more than $2,000 in electoral expenditure.
A third-party campaigner is a person or entity (other than a political party, candidate, group, elected member, or associated entity) that incurs more than $2,000 in electoral expenditure for the by-election between 10 August 2022 and election day, 15 October 2022.
Electoral expenditure incurred by a third-party campaigner is expenditure that has the dominant purpose of promoting or opposing a political party or candidate or influencing the vote at an election.
Registration of third-party campaigners is open now and closes on Monday, 10 October 2022. Use the following form to apply to register as a third-party campaigner: EF.735 Application to register a third-party campaigner and notice of appointment of official agent
When registering, a third-party campaigner must appoint an official agent, who is responsible for the management and disclosure of the third-party campaigner’s political donations and electoral expenditure. This includes operating a campaign account on behalf of the third-party campaigner.
The details of registered third-party campaigners and official agents are included in publicly available registers published on our website. Once registered, third-party campaigners and official agents whose registered details change must notify us within 30 days by submitting the following form: EF.740 Notice of change in registered particulars
7. Disclosure obligations of political participants
Registered candidates, current councillors and mayors, political parties and their associated entities, and third-party campaigners must disclose their political donations and electoral expenditure to the NSW Electoral Commission.
Political donations made and received must be disclosed every six-months. The half-yearly donation disclosure periods end 31 December and 30 June.
Electoral expenditure must be disclosed annually. The annual disclosure period ends 30 June.
Disclosures must be lodged even if no political donations were made or received during the half-yearly period and/or no electoral expenditure was incurred during the annual period.
Candidates must lodge disclosures for each half-yearly and annual period until September 2023. These obligations apply even if you are not elected. If you are elected, you must also submit disclosures for the remainder of your term as an elected member. Criminal penalties may apply for non-compliance.
More information about disclosure obligations
8. Caps on electoral expenditure
Electoral expenditure for this by-election is capped during the capped expenditure period. The capped expenditure period began on 10 August 2022 and ends on election day, 15 October 2022. During this period, there is a strict limit on the expenditure that can be incurred by political parties and their associated entities, candidates and third-party campaigners.
The caps applicable to political participants for this by-election are available on our website.
The caps are based on the number of electors enrolled in the City of Ryde (West Ward)
More information about the rules that apply to expenditure caps.
9. Further information / Candidate Helpdesk
Further information regarding the by-election including key dates can be found on the NSW Electoral Commission website or by contacting the Candidate Helpdesk on 1300 022 011 or candidates@elections.nsw.gov.au