Like you, we want our democratic duty to vote on 4th December to deliver the best possible outcome for Dubbo.

 

This year, we need to think about the wards in two ways. Firstly, to work out which one you're in. And secondly, have a say on whether or not you want to keep the ward system, as there will be a referendum held in tandem with the elections asking this question. 

 

It's been a few years since we've had to vote in a local government election, so you may need to brush up on your knowledge about the wards.

 

There are 5 wards - Wellington, Central, East, South and North. It would be easy to assume that your ward would be obvious, however given there is no 'west' ward, the region has been split up differently to what you might expect. For example, most of West Dubbo falls under the North Ward, and most of the streets we typically call 'North Dubbo' are part of the East Ward.

 

Your ward is determined by the address associated with your voting registration with the Australian Electoral Commission. If you have moved, the ship has already sailed in formally updating your address in time for the election, you will need to vote in line with the ward of your registered address. Two candidates from each ward will be popularly elected onto Dubbo Regional Council. You can check out your enrolment by clicking here.

 

We've only had the ward system since the amalgamation of Dubbo and Wellington Councils, so this is the second election using this system. You'll get the chance to have your say about whether or not you would like to keep the wards via a referendum. The referendum question will read "Currently Dubbo Regional Council is divided into five wards that elect 10 councillors in total; do you favour abolishing this ward system in favour of a single area consisting of all voters that elects 11 councillors?"

 

Dubbo regional council has put up some helpful information about the wards and other election information.

 

The official ballot papers are included below for your information, remembering you will only be able to vote in line with your registered ward. 

 

I hope you've found this helpful, have a productive day!