2023 Western Australian local elections
The 2023 Western Australian local elections were held on 21 October 2023 to elect the councils of the 137 local government areas (LGAs) in Western Australia.[1] Many councils also held mayoral and deputy mayoral elections.[2] Local elections in WA are held periodically, meaning around half of all councillors were elected in 2021 and therefore are not up for election until 2025.[2]
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Registered | 1,716,732 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Electoral reform saw optional preferential voting introduced, and council representation changed to align with the population of the district.[1][3]
Electoral reform
Significant electoral reform was introduced into the state parliament by the McGowan government in February 2023. It saw optional preferential voting (used for local and state elections in New South Wales) introduced, replacing first-past-the-post.[1] Up until 2021 in multi-member wards, a voter would get to vote for as many candidates as there are vacancies (known as plurality voting).[2]
Council representation was also changed to align with the population of the district, with council wards abolished for smaller councils. For all larger councils, the mayor or president will now be popularly elected, rather than appointed by councillors.[1]
Party changes before elections
A number of councillors joined or left parties before the 2023 elections.
| Council | Ward | Councillor | Former party | New party | Date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kalgoorlie-Boulder | Unsubdivided | Dave Grills | Western Australia | Independent | 16 October 2021 | ||
| Rockingham | Deputy Mayor | Hayley Edwards | Labor | Independent | April 2023 | ||
Campaign
The election campaigns in a number of LGAs saw controversies. In Busselton, candidate Stephen Wells was reported to have made racist and anti-semitic comments.[4] In Swan, candidate Mani Singh had his election corflutes stolen and vandilised by a "rougue individual".[5]
Results
Council votes
| Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independents | ||||||
| Labor | ||||||
| Liberal | ||||||
| Greens | ||||||
| National | ||||||
| Christians | 1 |  1 | ||||
| Legalise Cannabis | 1 |  1 | ||||
| No Mandatory Vaccination | 0 |  | ||||
| Turnout | ||||||
Notes
- This does not include seats that were won in 2021 but not up for re-election until the 2025 elections.
References
- "2023 local government elections". Western Australian Electoral Commission.
- "Western Australia's first step on local council voting reform". The Tally Room.
- "WA rolls out local government electoral reforms ahead of October elections". The Mandarin.
- "Busselton council candidate Stephen Wells stands by racist, anti-Semitic commentary". ABC News.
- "'Disgusting behaviour': Campaigns get dirty as Perth's local government candidates go to war". WA Today.