Election events

The Electoral Commission of Queensland is an independent and impartial organisation established under the Electoral Act 1992 to administer the following electoral events.

Current elections

Click on the link/s below to find out more about the election events that are currently running in Queensland.

• Cassowary Coast Regional Council Councillor by-election
• Richmond Shire Council Councillor by-election

Recent elections

Click on the link/s below to find out more about recent election events in Queensland.

• Carpentaria Shire Council Councillor by-election
• Rockhampton Regional Council Division 3 by-election
• Barcoo Shire Council Councillor by-election
• Winton Shire Council Councillor by-election
• Rockhampton Regional Council Mayoral by-election
• Townsville City Council Division 10 by-election

Click on the link below to find out more about election events that were held in Queensland in 2020.

• 2020 Election events

State government elections

Queensland has transitioned to four year fixed-terms following the 2016 referendum.

Queensland comprises of 93 electorates. For more information see electoral boundaries.

The 2020 State general election was held on 31 October 2020. You can view the results on the 2020 State general election results page.

Local government elections

Local government elections are held every four years on the last Saturday in March, unless changed by regulation.

There are 77 local government areas within Queensland. A divided council has internal boundaries known as divisions or wards and voters elect a councillor to represent their division. In an undivided council, voters elect all the councillors for their local government area.

The 2020 local government elections were held on 28 March 2020. See the results on the 2020 local government elections results page.

By-elections

By-elections may be held if a vacancy occurs during a term of office for a member of parliament, a mayor or a councillor.

Vacancies can occur for many reasons, including death, resignation, absence without leave, expulsion or disqualification.

Election results and statistics

For information about historical elections, see the Election results and statistics page.

Referendums

A referendum is held when the government would like to change the State Constitution and provides electors with the opportunity to give their opinion. Voting in a referendum is compulsory.

In a state referendum, you'll be asked to vote in favour of ("yes") or against ("no") one or more questions, rather than selecting a candidate/s as a representative for state district or local government area.

Industrial elections

ECQ is responsible for conducting industrial elections under the Industrial Relations Act 2016. Applications may be made to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC) seeking an election of office-bearers. Prescribed election information (form 65) must be lodged with the QIRC. This form can be found on the QIRC website. If the application is approved, the QIRC will issue a decision instructing ECQ to conduct the election.