Councillors and council employees contesting elections

A person cannot be a councillor while the person is a government member of a Parliament of the Commonwealth or of a State (including Queensland) or a councillor of a local government in another State.

Councillors should advise the council meeting chairperson (normally the mayor) of their intention to take a leave of absence, and then seek approval from councillors at an ordinary council meeting.

If successful at the election, you are taken to have automatically stopped being a councillor when you become a government member which occurs on the day after the declaration of the election results. This means you are not required to provide a formal resignation from the council.

Under the Human Rights Act 2019, all people have the right to participate in democratic decision-making and run in local and state government elections if they are eligible.

However, your council may have election period policies that cover both councillors and council employees.

There are also requirements under legislation for councillors and council employees who contest state and federal elections.

Use of council resources

You must maintain a clear separation between your council role and campaigning activities.

Councillors and council employees should not use council-provided resources such as vehicles, phones, email accounts or printers for campaigning. This applies at any time, not just during the official election period.

Councillors – local government elections

Councillors are not required to resign or take leave during a quadrennial local government election, or for a by-election for a different position such as mayor or changing divisions.

There are limits during the caretaker period on publishing election material and making major policy decisions (PDF, 96KB). There is no caretaker period for by-elections.

A sitting councillor who is unsuccessful for re-election at a quadrennial election, stops being a councillor immediately when the Electoral Commission of Queensland (ECQ) announces the result of the election to candidates.

If you run as a councillor in a by-election for mayor and are unsuccessful you continue in your role as a councillor. If you are successful, you start being mayor when the ECQ announces the result of the election and resign from your previous councillor role.

Councillors – state elections

Councillors are not required to resign to contest a state or federal election, but councillors contesting state elections must take leave without pay for the duration of the period for which they are a candidate, the election period as prescribed in the Electoral Act 1992. Councillors contesting Federal elections take leave on full pay for the duration of the period for which they are a candidate:

Compulsory leave starts on the day the ECQ publishes the final list of candidates for the election (normally soon after the close of nominations). Councillors can seek to start a leave of absence earlier if they wish.
You must remain on leave until the full results of election have been declared, even if it is already clear that you have been unsuccessful in your electorate.

Councillors should advise the council meeting chairperson (normally the mayor) of their intention to take a leave of absence, and then seek approval from councillors at an ordinary council meeting.

If successful at the election, you are taken to have automatically stopped being a councillor when you become a government member and take your oath of office. This means you are not required to provide a formal resignation from the council.

Councillor vacancies

If a mayor or councillor is successful at an election but leaves the role for another reason, their vacant council position is filled.

Depending on when the vacancy occurs, there are different ways for it to be filled. For example, if a councillor position becomes vacant more than three months before the next quadrennial election, then the local government must fill the vacancy. If the position becomes vacant after three months before the next quadrennial election, then the council may decide not to fill the vacant position.

The following provisions apply to filling vacancies:

Councillor vacancies in the beginning first 12 months of the term (a beginning term starts from the day of the last quadrennial election and ends on the day before the first anniversary of the last quadrennial elections); councils decide by resolution whether to appoint the election runner up from the quadrennial election or hold a by-election (except for Brisbane City Council who hold a by-election), and if there is no runner up, then a by-election is held.
Councillor vacancies in the middle period of the term (a middle period starts on the day of the first anniversary of the last quadrennial elections and ends on the day before the third anniversary of the last quadrennial election); by holding a by-election.
Mayor vacancies in the beginning or middle period of the term; by holding a by-election.
Councillors in the final period of the council term (the final period starts on the third anniversary of the last quadrennial elections and ends on the day before the next quadrennial election): appointment by resolution of the other councillors of a person qualified to be a councillor or if the vacancy occurs less than three months before the next quadrennial election, they may resolve to not fill the vacancy.
Mayor vacancy in the final period of the term must be filled by the other councillors appointing by resolution another councillor as mayor.

Council employees – local government elections

Council employees are not required by legislation to resign or take leave to contest local government elections. However, taking leave is recommended, especially during the official election period (i.e., when the ECQ has notified the election date and opened nominations).

However, your council may also have policies requiring you to take election leave.

Employees have a right to take up to two months leave either as paid leave (e.g., accrued annual leave) or unpaid leave.

If successful at the election, you are taken to have resigned as a local government employee the day before you become a councillor which is when the ECQ declares the result of the election.

A local government employee does not include a person who is employed under a federally funded community development project for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander persons or a class of employees that are prescribed under a regulation.

Council employees – state elections

Council employees are not required to resign to contest a state election, but must take leave during the election period:

Compulsory leave starts on the day the ECQ publishes the final list of candidates for the election (normally soon after the close of nominations). You can seek to start leave earlier if you wish.
You must remain on leave until the ECQ has declared the winning candidate in your electorate.

If successful at the election, you are deemed to have stopped being a local government employee the day before election day.

Federal elections

Information about the eligibility of councillors, council employees and state government employees to nominate for a federal election is available on the Australian Electoral Commission website.

State and federal government employees

State and federal government employees are not required by legislation to resign or take leave to contest a Queensland local government election.

You can find information about running for local, state or federal elections on the Queensland Government website or Australian Public Service Commission website.

More information

For more information, contact your nearest regional office of the Department of State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning or the Electoral Commission of Queensland.

Last updated: 18 Jul 2023