2026 Victorian state election
Election for the 61st Parliament of Victoria
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A state general election is scheduled to be held on 28 November 2026 to elect members of the 61st Parliament of Victoria. All 88 seats in the Legislative Assembly and all 40 seats in the Legislative Council will be up for election.
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28 November 2026
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All 88 seats in the Legislative Assembly 45 seats needed for a majority All 40 seats in the Legislative Council | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Winning margin by electorate | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The incumbent Labor government, led by Premier Ben Carroll, will seek to win a fourth consecutive four-year term against the opposition, the Liberal–National Coalition, led by Opposition Leader Jess Wilson. Other parties including One Nation, the Greens and independents will also participate in the election.
The election will be administered by the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC).
Background
Previous election and parliament
The Labor Party, led by Daniel Andrews, was elected into government at the 2014 election. Labor has been in government for all but one term since the 1999 election. Andrews' government was re-elected at the 2018 election and again at the 2022 election, winning 56 seats. The Liberal–National Coalition gained one seat to 28 seats, the Greens won 4 seats. In the Legislative Council, the Labor party won 15 of the 40 seats.
Andrews announced his resignation as premier and leader of the Labor Party on 26 September 2023, the resignation being formally effected the following day. This precipitated a leadership election within the Labor party-room, which was won unopposed by Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan following hours of intense negotiations between members of Labor's left and right factions. Allan, of the left, was elected leader, with right-faction member and Education Minister Ben Carroll as her deputy.[2] Allan became the second female premier in the state's history, following Joan Kirner's 1990–1992 premiership.[3] The government is seeking a fourth consecutive four-year term.
Following the Liberal/National Coalition's defeat, Opposition Leader and Liberal leader Matthew Guy announced in his post-election concession speech he would resign the leadership of the party. This ensured a leadership election was held for the position, at which newly elected member for Hawthorn John Pesutto defeated Brad Battin by one vote in a secret ballot of Liberal party-room MPs.[4]
Since the 2022 state election, and the January 2023 supplementary election in Narracan, there have been five by-elections: the August 2023 Warrandyte by-election, the November 2023 Mulgrave by-election, the February 2025 Werribee and Prahran by-elections, and the May 2026 Nepean by-election. In Prahran, the incumbent Greens – whose member had turned independent before resigning – were defeated by the Liberal candidate. At the other four by-elections, the incumbent's party successfully retained the seat.
Aside from this, the Assembly's composition has been altered by the removal of Will Fowles and Darren Cheeseman from the Labor caucus in October 2023 and April 2024 respectively, with both now sitting on the crossbench as "Independent Labor" MPs. The resignation of Sam Hibbins from the Greens on 1 November 2024 also resulted in his sitting on the crossbench as an Independent MP until resigning from Parliament on 23 November, resulting in the Prahran by-election.[5]
On 27 December 2024, a leadership spill resulted in Brad Battin replacing John Pesutto as Liberal leader and leader of the opposition.[6] Pesutto's leadership came under intense pressure after a federal court judgement finding he defamed Liberal parliamentarian Moira Deeming and was ordered to pay $300,000 in damages.[7] Battin's leadership lasted 11 months, as he was defeated in another leadership spill on 18 November 2025 by Kew MP Jess Wilson.[8] Media reporting quoted several Liberal MPs on background complaining about Battin's alleged lack of focus on issues other than Victoria's crime rates.[9]
Rise of One Nation
By early 2026, the right-wing One Nation party's polling had risen considerably, with many national polls showing them on a higher vote than the Liberal Party. One Nation polled more votes than the Liberal Party at the 2026 South Australian state election, winning four seats to the Liberal Party's five. SA Labor meanwhile won in a landslide.
Liberal Party members have had differing views of how to counter the One Nation surge, with former Premier Jeff Kennett urging the party to form an 'anti-Labor partnership' with One Nation. Meanwhile, Victorian Liberal president Phil Davis has warned his party against chasing One Nation "to the fringe of Australian politics", publicly chastising Peta Credlin and other Liberal members from its conservative faction for running an agenda "through Sky News and News Corp newspapers to divide and remake the party."[10]
Labor Party leadership change
In July 2026, a leadership election for the Victorian Labor Party occurred after weeks of poor opinion polling for the incumbent Allan government. Allan initially planned to contest the ballot. However, after Deputy Premier Ben Carroll announced that he would challenge Allan's leadership, Allan pulled out of the contest and resigned as Victorian Premier.[11] Carroll was then elected unopposed Labor leader and the 50th Premier of Victoria. [12]
Electoral system
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Eligible Victorian electors are required to cast a ballot due to compulsory voting laws. The eligibility criteria for enrolment to vote includes being 18 years or older, an Australian citizen, and to have lived in Victoria for longer than a month.[13]
Legislative Assembly
For the election of members to single seats of the Legislative Assembly, the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) uses full preferential voting where for a vote to count, it is required to number every box on the ballot in the order of the most preferred candidate for the particular electoral district an elector is registered to vote in.[14] The election will cover all 88 Seats of the Victorian Legislative Assembly.[15]
Legislative Council
In the Legislative Council, five members are elected from each of the state's eight electoral regions, ensuring a total of 40 members are elected to serve in the council. At this election, a voter is required to vote either above the line for at least five parties or grouping of candidates in order of their preference; or vote below the line for at least five individual candidates in order of their preference. This creates a form of proportional representation, using the single transferable vote and optional preferential voting mechanisms.
Reforms to council's electoral system
Ahead of this election the parliament passed electoral reform legislation to change the electoral system for the Legislative Council.[16] Under the former system that was first adopted for the 2006 state election, members were elected in one of the eight regions by electors who could vote either above the line or below the line,[14][17] however above-the-line voters could only vote for only one party or grouping of candidates. Preferences were then automatically distributed based on the registered preference order provided to the VEC by the party-submitted group voting ticket.[14][16] When voting below the line voters were required to number a minimum of five boxes on the ballot in order of preference.[14]
By 2026, Victoria's upper house had become the last remaining state or territory legislative chamber to utilise these group voting tickets to automatically distribute voter's above-the-line preferences,[18] with Western Australia abolishing the practice ahead of the 2025 state election. Victoria's system had led to election results in the upper house becoming unrepresentative of the actual votes received, with so-called 'preference whisperers' such as Glenn Druery organising ideologically disparate microparties to direct their preferences to each other, allowing candidates to be elected despite receiving less than 1% of the vote in some cases.[19][20]
Attempts to reform the system to more closely reflect the system used for the Australian Senate and other state-based upper houses were rejected by former Premier Daniel Andrews, who described proponents of change as being "quite heavily motivated by wanting to get more of their people elected".[21] Submissions to the post-2022 state election parliamentary inquiry calling for the abolition of the automatic above-the-line preference distributions eventually led to the parliament's Electoral Matters Committee (EMC) to examine the issue.[22] Throughout 2025 the EMC oversaw an inquiry into reforming the electoral voting method for the Legislative Council.[22] Any reform required the approval of both houses of parliament, whilst an alteration to the structure of the upper house, such as the number of members elected to the chamber or the eight regions from which they are elected, would require a vote at a state-wide referendum.[18][23]
The EMC handed down its report in December 2025, recommending that group voting tickets be abolished and the "weighted inclusive Gregory method for surplus vote transfers" be adopted prior to the 2026 election.[24] The committee further recommended a new process be established, involving either an expert panel, a citizens assembly or a constitutional convention, to consider changes to the electoral structure of the council which could be considered by voters at a referendum in 2028 or 2030.[24]
The issue received renewed scrutiny in April 2026, when far-right commentator Avi Yemini announced his intention to set up the "Free Palestine" party in a bid to attract votes from left-wing voters and redirect preferences of votes the party receives to right-wing parties.[25] The electoral commission responded by confirming it had no authority to prevent parties from adopting misleading names, and in June the commission began the process of registering "Free Palestine" as a political party.[26] In July 2026 The Age reported that the Allan government was set to introduce legislation by the end of the month to abolish group voting tickets.[27]
The government introduced the Electoral Amendment (Miscellaneous Matters) Bill 2026 to the parliament on 28 July.[28] The bill required voters to number at least five boxes for parties above the line, in order of preference, or else number at least five boxes for individual candidates below the line.[29] Like the system in place for the Senate, a savings provision is incorporated so as to enable voters who mark a clear 1 but fail to number their top five preferences clearly, to still have their vote counted as formal.[30] The electoral commission is also tasked with publishing information about newly registered political parties, a response to Yemini and other's efforts to establish parties titled with generally misleading names.[31] The bill passed the Legislative Assembly without any recorded objections on 29 July, and passed the Legislative Council by 33 votes to 4 on 11 August 2026.[16][28][32] The legislation received royal assent on 18 August 2026 and went into effect the following day.[33]
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Registered parties
Parties registered with the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC).[35]
- Animal Justice Party
- Australian Citizens Party
- Australian Greens
- Australian Labor Party
- Democratic Labour Party
- Family First Victoria
- Freedom Party of Victoria
- Legalise Cannabis
- Liberal Party
- Libertarian Party
- National Party
- New Democrats
- One Nation
- Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party
- Sustainable Australia Party
- Victorian Socialists
- Free Palestine Party
- The West Party
Additionally, the Frontline Workers Party,[36] the Fusion Party,[37] Ian Cook's Fair Go Party,[38] Socialist Alliance,[39] the Victorians Party (unrelated to a party of the same name formed in 2022),[40] Save the Environment Party,[41] are seeking registration.
Candidates and retiring MPs
The following members announced that they will not be contesting the 2026 election:
Labor
- Jackson Taylor MLA (Bayswater) – announced 23 September 2025[42]
- Steve McGhie MLA (Melton) – announced 23 September 2025[42]
- Emma Vulin MLA (Pakenham) – announced 30 September 2025[43]
- Jordan Crugnale MLA (Bass) – announced 2 October 2025[44]
- Natalie Hutchins MLA (Sydenham) – announced 16 October 2025[45]
- Shaun Leane MLC (North-Eastern Metropolitan Region) – announced 1 December 2025[46]
- Danny Pearson MLA (Essendon) – announced 10 April 2026[47]
- Mary-Anne Thomas MLA (Macedon) – announced 10 April 2026[47]
- Gayle Tierney MLC (Western Victoria Region) – announced 10 April 2026[47]
- Lily D'Ambrosio, MLA (Mill Park) – announced 30 July 2026[48]
- Harriet Shing MLC (Eastern Victoria Region) – announced 30 July 2026[48]
- Jacinta Allan MLA (Bendigo East) – announced 14 August 2026[49]
- Maree Edwards MLA (Bendigo West) – announced 27 August 2026[50]
Liberal
- Bill Tilley MLA (Benambra) – announced 13 March 2024[51]
- David Hodgett MLA (Croydon) – announced 6 August 2025[52]
- Michael O'Brien MLA (Malvern) – announced 9 September 2025[53]
- Kim Wells MLA (Rowville) – announced 14 September 2025[54]
- Wendy Lovell MLC (Northern Victoria Region) – announced 5 January 2026[55]
- Joe McCracken MLC (Western Victoria Region) – announced 12 January 2026[56]
National
- Peter Walsh MLA (Murray Plains) – announced 26 November 2024[57]
- Tim Bull MLA (Gippsland East) – announced 19 May 2026[58]
- Kim O'Keeffe MLA (Shepparton) – announced 21 July 2026[59]
Greens
Read died in September 2026.[61]
Legalise Cannabis
- David Ettershank MLC (Western Metropolitan Region) – announced 2 June 2026[62]
Campaign
On 13 September 2025, the first day of the Victorian Liberal state conference, Battin announced that if elected his government would, by Christmas 2026, grant police the power to stop and search individuals in public places using a handheld metal detector without warrants or designations.[63][64][65]
The Liberal/National opposition has vowed to repeal the statewide treaty law within 100 days of government if it wins the 2026 Victorian state election.[66]
On 2 August 2026, Warren Pickering was announced as the lead candidate for One Nation Victoria.[67]
Date
In accordance to the timetable set out in the Electoral Act 2002 (VIC), the terms of elected officials to Victorian Parliament are on a fixed term basis. All elections since 2006 have occurred every four years on the last Saturday of November. Unless the Governor of Victoria unexpectedly dissolves parliament, the election is expected to be held on 28 November 2026.[68]
Expected timeline of the election
- 3 November 2026: The Legislative Assembly expires prompting the need for an election to be held. This also means that there are no longer any members, business of parliament ends until a new parliament is formed, and government enters into a caretaker period.[69]
- 3 November 2026: On the same day that the Legislative Assembly expires, the Governor of Victoria issues a writ for the VEC to hold an election.[68]
- 10 November 2026: 7 days after the writ is issued, at 8:00 pm, the electoral roll is closed meaning people can no longer be added to the electoral roll, update the electorate they live in, or update any other information.[68]
- 13 November 2026: 10 days after the writ is issued, at noon, the period for submitting candidate nominations closes.[68]
- 18 November 2026: Early voting commences.[70]
- 28 November 2026: The last Saturday of November, nearest to the fourth year following of the previous election date, is the Election Day.[68]
- 19 December 2026: Within 21 days following election day, the Electoral Commissioner returns the writ with information regarding the successful candidates.[68]
Pre-electoral pendulum
| Crossbench seats (5) | |||
| Seat | Member | Party | Margin |
| Richmond | Gabrielle de Vietri | GRN | 7.3% v ALP |
| Melbourne | Ellen Sandell | GRN | 10.2% v ALP |
| Prahran | Rachel Westaway[m] | LIB | 12.0% v LIB[n] |
| Brunswick | Tim Read | GRN | 13.7% v ALP |
Opinion polling
Primary vote
Two-party preferred
Notes
- The election for the District of Narracan was deferred. A supplementary election was held on 28 January 2023.
- Will Fowles and Darren Cheeseman have sat on the crossbench as Independent Labor MPs since 5 August 2023 and 29 April 2024 respectively.
- The Liberals gained the seat of Prahran at a by-election in 2025.
- The Greens lost the seat of Prahran to the Liberal Party at a by-election on 8 February 2025.[1]
- Tim Read, the member for Brunswick died on 19 September 2026.
- Elected at the 2023 Mulgrave state by-election following the resignation of Daniel Andrews.
- The two-candidate-preferred result of the 2023 by-election was ALP 6.5% vs IND.
- Lister succeeded Pallas following the 2025 Werribee state by-election.
- While Lister retained Werribee for Labor on a margin of 0.8% at the 2025 by-election, he will go into the state election based upon the margin that the party had won at the 2022 election.
- Werner succeeded Smith following the 2023 Warrandyte state by-election.
- The two-candidate-preferred result of the 2023 by-election was LIB 21.0% vs GRN. However Labor did not contest the by-election, therefore the LIB vs GRN margin won't be the two-candidate-preferred margin for Warrandyte at the next state election, and therefore should not be used in the pendulum. The LIB vs ALP margin for Warrandyte at the 2022 state election is used instead.
- Due to the sudden death of Nationals candidate Shaun Gilchrist, the election in Narracan was deferred, and a supplementary election was instead held on 28 January 2023.
- Elected following the 2025 Prahran state by-election.
- The two-candidate-preferred result of the 2025 by-election was LIB 1.4% vs GRN.