Lalor proposed to lose more ground to Gellibrand

With the explosion of population growth in Wyndham, the political landscape is being redrawn on the Federal level. A proposal release yesterday, sees some residents of Wyndham, change federal seats from Lalor to Gellibrand. Suburbs effected include Williams Landing, Truganina, and part of Point Cook.

The Redistribution Committee for Victoria today published its report proposing names and boundaries for the state’s federal electoral divisions.

Victoria is undergoing a redistribution as the number of members of the House of Representatives it is entitled to has increased from 38 to 39 as a result of a determination made by the Electoral Commissioner on Friday 3 July 2020.

The Chair of the Committee and Electoral Commissioner, Tom Rogers, said the Victorian redistribution was required to enable the increase from 38 to 39 electoral divisions. “Under the proposal, the boundaries of all but nine of Victoria’s existing electoral divisions would change, the additional division of Hawke would be created and one electoral division would be renamed,” Mr Rogers said.

“Ongoing population growth in parts of Victoria has led the Redistribution Committee to propose a number of substantial changes to some of the state’s electoral division boundaries.”

The proposal would see rearranging boundaries in the low-growth eastern suburbs of Melbourne to more equitably balance the high-growth areas to the south-east and north-west of the city. It also proposes altering boundaries in the west of Victoria to accommodate a new electoral division, and to more equitably balance electors in the rural and regional west.

Mr Rogers said the Committee had been faced with the task of inserting a new electoral division while also bringing all 39 divisions within the allowable numerical tolerance.

The consultative nature of the redistribution process continues, with individuals and organisations now able to lodge objections to the Committee’s proposed divisions.

Written objections must be lodged no later than 6pm (AEST) on Friday 16 April 2021. The AEC advises that the best way to lodge an objection is online. Objections can also be submitted via:

• Email – FedRedistribution-VIC@aec.gov.au
• Post – The Australian Electoral Commission (Att: Redistribution Secretariat), GPO Box 768, Melbourne VIC 3001
• Fax – 03 6293 7664.

All objections received by the deadline will be available for public inspection on the AEC website and at Urban Workshop, Level 1, 50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne (business hours only) from Monday 19 April 2021.

Comments on the objections will then be accepted until 6pm (AEST) on Friday 30 April 2021.

All comments on objections received by the deadline will also be made available for public inspection from Monday 3 May 2021.