Parties and Candidates
- Details
A person who is a candidate for election to an office of a council must lodge the following returns with the Electoral Commissioner:
CAMPAIGN DONATIONS RETURN - all councils including the City of Adelaide
Candidates (for all councils including the City of Adelaide) must lodge a campaign donations return with the Electoral Commissioner.
Candidates must lodge 2 returns:
For a periodic election:
- the first campaign donation return must be lodged with the returning officer in the period between 22 to 28 days after the close of nominations
- the second campaign donation return must be lodged within 30 days after the conclusion of the election.
For any other type of election (supplementary, etc.):
- the first campaign donation return must be lodged with the returning officer in the period between 8 to 14 days after the close of nominations
- the second campaign donation return must be lodged within 30 days after the conclusion of the election.
The return must disclose:
- the total amount or value of all gifts received during the disclosure period
- the number of people who made those gifts
- the amount or value of each gift
- the date on which each gift was made
- details of persons and organisations (donors) providing those gifts.
The campaign donations return need not set out any details in respect of:
- a private gift made to the candidate
- a gift with an amount or value less than $500
- a gift already disclosed in a large gift return
If a candidate is not required to provide any details in a return, the campaign donations return must still be lodged and include a statement to the effect that no gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received.
LARGE GIFTS RETURN - all councils including the City of Adelaide
All candidates (for all councils including the City of Adelaide) must lodge a large gifts return if they receive a gift or gifts from a donor in excess of $2,500.
The Acts prescribe different times that the large gifts return must be lodged, but during the election year, a large gift return must be lodged within 5 days of receipt of the large gift.
The return must disclose:
- the amount or value of each gift received
- details of persons and organisations (donors) providing those gifts
- the date on which each gift was made.
Two or more gifts (excluding private gifts) made by the same person to a candidate during the disclosure period are to be treated as one gift.
A large gifts return need not set out any details in respect of a private gift made to the candidate. A gift to a candidate is a private gift if it is made in a private capacity to the candidate for their personal use and the candidate has not used, and will not use, the gift solely or substantially for a purpose related to the election.
- Large Gifts Return - other councils - LG52 (PDF, 232KB)
- Large Gifts Return - City of Adelaide - LG53 (PDF, 797KB)
Large gifts returns should be lodged with ECSA at
CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE RETURN - City of Adelaide only
Candidates for City of Adelaide elections must lodge a campaign expenditure return, in addition to any campaign donation return or large gift return.
A campaign expenditure return must be lodged within 30 days of the conclusion of the election and set out all details of campaign expenditure in relation to the election incurred by or with the authority of the candidate.
If a candidate does not incur more than $500 in campaign expenditure, they may lodge a ‘NIL’ return.
The types of expenditure defined as campaign expenditure are set out in section 25(2) of the City of Adelaide Act 1998 and they include items such as:
- the broadcasting of an electoral advertisement
- production and display of an electoral advertisement
- production of material requiring the author or printer of the material to be displayed in accordance with section 27 LGEA 1999
- consulting and advertising agency fees
- production and distribution of electoral material.
Offences
See section 85 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 and section 29 of the City of Adelaide Act 1998. It is an offence to fail to lodge a return within time, to lodge a return containing false or misleading information, or to supply information that is false or misleading to another person for a return. The maximum penalty is $10,000.
Public inspection of returns
The Electoral Commissioner is required to publish all returns within prescribed times on a website maintained by the returning officer. Campaign donation returns and large gift returns disclosed by candidates standing in council election are available on each candidate's online profile.
* The above link will take you to our council elections results site. Each candidate's return is accessed via their profile by selecting the blue button beside the relevant donation return.
Records
See section 89 of the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999 and section 33 of the City of Adelaide Act 1988. A person must take reasonable steps to retain all records relevant to a return and keep these for at least 4 years after the date of which the relevant return is required to be lodged. The maximum penalty is $5,000.
More information
- Part 8, ss 22-34 of the City of Adelaide Act 1998
- Regulation 6 of the City of Adelaide (Elections and Polls) Regulations 2010
Disclaimer: The information provided above is general in nature. Candidates and others should refer to the specific wording of the Act and Regulations and seek independent legal or other advice on any issues of interpretation that may arise.
- Details
Part 13A of the Electoral Act 1985 allows compliance audits to be undertaken for the purpose of finding out whether participants have complied with the Part.
- Details
On this page
- Definition of an associated entity
- Appointing an agent
- State campaign accounts
- Reporting and disclosure obligations
- Offences and penalties
Definition
Under the Electoral Act 1985 (the Act), an associated entity is any entity that meets one or more of the following criteria:
- It is controlled by one or more registered political parties
- It operates wholly or significantly for the benefit of one or more registered political parties
- It is a financial member of a registered political party or has someone acting on its behalf who is
- It has voting rights in a registered political party or has someone acting on its behalf who has.
Exclusion: Registered industrial organisations or entities wholly comprised of them are not considered associated entities.
Note: An associated entity is also considered a third party under the Act if it:
- Incurs or intends to incur more than $10,000 in political expenditure during the designated period for an election, or
- Incurred more than $10,000 in political expenditure during the designated period for the last general election.
👉 To register as an associated entity, complete the Associated Entity Details Form.
Appointing an agent
An associated entity may appoint a person to act as its agent for electoral purposes, including managing disclosure obligations. If no agent is appointed, the financial controller of the entity is automatically considered its agent and is responsible for compliance.
👉 See our agents page for details on eligibility and appointment requirements.
State campaign accounts
Associated entities must establish a state campaign account if they receive funds that must be deposited under the Act, such as:
- Electoral donations
- Public funding payments
- Funds for political expenditure or reimbursement.
👉 See state campaign accounts for details.
Reporting and disclosure obligations
Associated entities must lodge regular disclosure returns with the Electoral Commissioner under Part 13A of the Act.
Disclosure Timetable - 2026 State Election
Half-yearly returns
Returns must be lodged within 30 days of the end of each half-year:
- 1 January – 30 June
- 1 July – 31 December.
Election returns
From the start of the designated period to 30 days after polling day:
- First 30 days
- Then, each 7-day period until polling day
- If fewer than 7 days remain before the 30-day post-polling deadline, the final period covers those remaining days.
Returns for each of these periods must be lodged within 5 days of the end of the period.
Information required
Each return must include:
- Total receipts received by or on behalf of the entity
- Prescribed details for amounts over $1,000, including:
- Amount and date received
- Name and address of the donor or creditor
- Additional details for amounts from trusts, companies, or associations:
- Names of trustees, board members, or related bodies corporate.
Additional disclosure obligations
Associated entities may also be required to submit additional returns under sections 130ZQ to 130ZT of the Act, depending on their political expenditure and funding activities.
Political expenditure during capped expenditure period
(section 130ZQ)
- Applies if more than $5,000 in political expenditure is incurred during the capped expenditure period.
- The agent must lodge a return within 60 days after polling day, detailing the expenditure.
- Third parties must disclose any arrangements with Division 6 entities.
Annual political expenditure returns
(section 130ZR)
- Applies if more than $5,000 in political expenditure is incurred during a financial year, and the entity is not acting on behalf of the Crown or a member of parliament.
- Returns must be lodged within 12 weeks after the end of the financial year.
- Third parties must disclose any relevant arrangements.
Annual returns for amounts received
(section 130ZS)
- Applies if the entity received any amount over $1,000 used for political expenditure or reimbursement.
- Returns must include:
- Value and date of each amount
- Name and address of the contributor
- Any other prescribed details
- Aggregated amounts from the same donor are treated as one.
Related matters
(section 130ZT)
- Returns must not include party membership lists.
Audit certificates
An audit certificate must accompany each return. During election periods, only 2 bulk certificates are required:
- One lodged 7 days before polling day
- One lodged on the final return due date.
You may apply for a waiver if compliance costs are unreasonable.
Offences and penalties
Associated entities must comply with all disclosure and reporting obligations under Part 13A of the Act. Failure to do so may result in offences and legal penalties, as outlined in section 130ZZE and Regulation 40 of the Electoral Regulations 2024.
Failure to lodge required returns
Not submitting half-yearly, election period, or audit returns within the required timeframe is an offence.
Providing false or misleading information
Knowingly submitting incorrect or incomplete information in a return is a serious offence.
Failure to appoint an agent
If no agent is appointed, the financial controller is deemed responsible. Non-compliance by the financial controller may result in penalties.
Failure to maintain a state campaign account
If an associated entity receives funds that must be deposited into a campaign account and fails to do so, this may breach the Act.
Failure to provide prescribed particulars
When reporting donations or loans from associations, trusts, or bodies corporate, the entity must disclose the names of trustees, board members, or related bodies. Failure to do so may breach the Act.
- Details
Following the amendments introduced by the Electoral (Accountability and Integrity) Amendment Act 2024, what was previously referred to as 'special assistance funding' is now termed 'administrative funding.' This form of public funding is provided under Division 5 of the Electoral Act 1985.
👉 Learn more about administrative funding for registered political parties and independent members of parliament.
Historical overview of special assistance funding
Prior to the amendments introduced by the Electoral (Accountability and Integrity) Amendment Act 2024, public funding provided under Division 5 of the Electoral Act 1985 was known as special assistance funding.
Under this scheme, claims were subject to the following maximum indexed amounts:
- Up to 5 members of parliament: $35,000
- 6 or more members of parliament: $60,000
Between 2015 and 2024, the Electoral Commissioner paid special assistance funding to eligible parties in accordance with these limits. The table below outlines the amounts paid to various parties during that period.
Note: As of 2024, this funding is now referred to as administrative funding, reflecting changes made under the Amendment Act.
| Australian Labor Party | Liberal Party | The Greens | SA Best | Advance SA* | Dignity Party** | Family First^ | Australian Conservatives^^ | Pauline Hanson's One Nation | |
| Date | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ |
| 1/07/24 - 31/12/24 | 78,840.00 | 78,840.00 | 45,990.00 | 35,356.67 | - | - | - | - | 15,176.61 |
| 1/01/24 - 30/06/24 | 75,586.00 | 75,586.00 | 44,092.00 | 37,773.10 | - | - | - | - | 17,748.43 |
| 1/07/23 - 31/12/23 | 75,586.00 | 75,586.00 | 44,092.00 | 36,780.61 | - | - | - | - | 15,387.59 |
| 1/01/23 - 30/06/23 | 70,048.00 | 70,048.00 | 40,862.00 | 36,601.34 | - | - | - | - | 20,045.00 |
| 1/07/22 - 31/12/22 | 70,048.00 | 70,048.00 | 40,862.00 | 35,993.43 | - | - | - | - | 11,122.39 |
| 1/01/22 - 30/06/22 | 66,908.00 | 66,908.00 | 39,030.00 | 27,901.55 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/21 - 31/12/21 | 66,908.00 | 66,908.00 | 39,030.00 | 39,030.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/21 - 30/06/21 | 66,109.00 | 66,109.00 | 38,564.00 | 38,564.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/20 - 31/12/20 | 66,109.00 | 66,109.00 | 38,564.00 | 29,071.53 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/20 - 30/06/20 | 64,568.00 | 64,568.00 | 37,665.00 | 37,665.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/19 - 31/12/19 | 64,568.00 | 64,568.00 | 37,665.00 | 37,665.00 | 952.04 | - | -; | - | - |
| 1/01/19 - 30/06/19 | 63,711.00 | 63,711.00 | 37,165.00 | 37,165.00 | 219.24 | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/18 - 31/12/18 | 63,711.00 | 63,711.00 | 37,165.00 | 37,165.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/18 - 30/06/18 | 62,283.00 | 62,283.00 | 36.333.00 | - | - | - | - | 36,333.00 | - |
| 1/07/17 - 31/12/17 | 62,283.00 | 62,283.00 | 36,333.00 | - | - | 36,333.00 | - | - | - |
| 1/01/17 - 30/06/17 | 60,000.00 | 60,000.00 | 35,000.00 | - | - | 29,672.00 | - | - | - |
| 1/07/16 - 31/12/16 | 12,217.00 | 12,217.00 | 7,127.00 | - | - | 7,127.00 | 6,218.39 | - | - |
| 1/01/16 - 30/06/16 | 12,217.00 | 12,217.00 | 7,127.00 | - | - | 7,127.00 | 4,403.19 | - | - |
| 1/07/15 - 31/12/15 | 12,137.00 | 12,137.00 | 7,080.00 | - | - | 7,080.00 | 825.00 | - | - |
| Total | 1,113,837.00 | 1,113,837.00 | 613,413.00 | 466,732.23 | 1,171.28 | 87,339.00 | 11,446.58 | 36,333.00 | 79,480.02 |
| Special assistance paid to date: $3,523,589.11 | |||||||||
| * | deregistered 25 August 2022 |
| ** | deregistered 28 November 2019 |
| ^ | deregistered 27 June 2017 (n.b. a new party called Family First Party Inc. was registered on 13 January 2022) |
| ^^ | deregistered 27 June 2019 |
One-off special assistance funding (Historical - 2017)
Section 130UA of the Electoral Act 1985 was introduced on 9 June 2017 and expired on 31 August 2017. It allowed eligible registered political parties to claim a one-off payment of special assistance funding to cover prescribed administrative expenditure incurred in complying with Part 13A of the Act.
To receive this funding, parties were required to submit a written claim to the Electoral Commissioner by 31 July 2017. The maximum claimable amounts were:
- Parties with 5 or fewer members of Parliament: $56,000
- Parties with 6 or more members of Parliament: $96,000
These payments were made in addition to any half-yearly special assistance funding provided under Division 5 of the Act.
| Party | Claim |
| Australian Labor Party | $96,000.00 |
| Liberal Party | $96,000.00 |
| The Greens | $10,013.79 |
| Dignity Party | $43,861.44 |
| Total | $245,875.23 |
- Details
Special assistance funding is a form of public funding under Division 5 of the Electoral Act 1985.
It is available to be paid as a half yearly entitlement to eligible registered political parties who claim reimbursement of administrative expenditure.
Registered political parties must meet the following eligibility criteria to receive special assistance funding:
- At least 1 member of the party must have been a member of the Parliament of South Australia for all or part of the half-yearly period; and
- The party must have been a registered political party on polling day for the last preceding general election and continued to be registered for all of the half-yearly period; and
- The agent of the party submitted a valid claim to the Electoral Commissioner setting out the administrative expenditure incurred by the party during that half-yearly period.
Special assistance funding claims under Division 5 are limited to the following maximum amounts:
- For a party with 5 or fewer members of Parliament - $35,000 (indexed)
- For a party with 6 or more members of Parliament - $60,000 (indexed)
Since Part 13A came into effect, the Electoral Commissioner has paid the amounts shown in the table below for special assistance funding claims.
| Australian Labor Party | Liberal Party | The Greens | SA Best | Advance SA* | Dignity Party** | Family First^ | Australian Conservatives^^ | Pauline Hanson's One Nation | |
| Date | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ |
| 1/07/24 - 31/12/24 | 78,840.00 | 78,840.00 | 45,990.00 | 35,356.67 | - | - | - | - | 15,176.61 |
| 1/01/24 - 30/06/24 | 75,586.00 | 75,586.00 | 44,092.00 | 37,773.10 | - | - | - | - | 17,748.43 |
| 1/07/23 - 31/12/23 | 75,586.00 | 75,586.00 | 44,092.00 | 36,780.61 | - | - | - | - | 15,387.59 |
| 1/01/23 - 30/06/23 | 70,048.00 | 70,048.00 | 40,862.00 | 36,601.34 | - | - | - | - | 20,045.00 |
| 1/07/22 - 31/12/22 | 70,048.00 | 70,048.00 | 40,862.00 | 35,993.43 | - | - | - | - | 11,122.39 |
| 1/01/22 - 30/06/22 | 66,908.00 | 66,908.00 | 39,030.00 | 27,901.55 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/21 - 31/12/21 | 66,908.00 | 66,908.00 | 39,030.00 | 39,030.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/21 - 30/06/21 | 66,109.00 | 66,109.00 | 38,564.00 | 38,564.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/20 - 31/12/20 | 66,109.00 | 66,109.00 | 38,564.00 | 29,071.53 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/20 - 30/06/20 | 64,568.00 | 64,568.00 | 37,665.00 | 37,665.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/19 - 31/12/19 | 64,568.00 | 64,568.00 | 37,665.00 | 37,665.00 | 952.04 | - | -; | - | - |
| 1/01/19 - 30/06/19 | 63,711.00 | 63,711.00 | 37,165.00 | 37,165.00 | 219.24 | - | - | - | - |
| 1/07/18 - 31/12/18 | 63,711.00 | 63,711.00 | 37,165.00 | 37,165.00 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1/01/18 - 30/06/18 | 62,283.00 | 62,283.00 | 36.333.00 | - | - | - | - | 36,333.00 | - |
| 1/07/17 - 31/12/17 | 62,283.00 | 62,283.00 | 36,333.00 | - | - | 36,333.00 | - | - | - |
| 1/01/17 - 30/06/17 | 60,000.00 | 60,000.00 | 35,000.00 | - | - | 29,672.00 | - | - | - |
| 1/07/16 - 31/12/16 | 12,217.00 | 12,217.00 | 7,127.00 | - | - | 7,127.00 | 6,218.39 | - | - |
| 1/01/16 - 30/06/16 | 12,217.00 | 12,217.00 | 7,127.00 | - | - | 7,127.00 | 4,403.19 | - | - |
| 1/07/15 - 31/12/15 | 12,137.00 | 12,137.00 | 7,080.00 | - | - | 7,080.00 | 825.00 | - | - |
| Total | 1,113,837.00 | 1,113,837.00 | 613,413.00 | 466,732.23 | 1,171.28 | 87,339.00 | 11,446.58 | 36,333.00 | 79,480.02 |
| Special assistance paid to date: $3,523,589.11 | |||||||||
| * | deregistered 25 August 2022 |
| ** | deregistered 28 November 2019 |
| ^ | deregistered 27 June 2017 (n.b. a new party called Family First Party Inc. was registered on 13 January 2022) |
| ^^ | deregistered 27 June 2019 |
One-off special assistance funding
Section 130UA was inserted into the Electoral Act 1985 on 9 June 2017 and expired on 31 August 2017. This section permitted eligible registered political parties to claim a one-off payment of special assistance funding for prescribed administrative expenditure for the purpose of complying with Part 13A of the Act.
Eligible registered political parties who wished to make a claim were required to submit a claim in writing to the Electoral Commissioner by 31 July 2017. This section limited the claim to the following maximum amounts:
- For parties with 5 or fewer members of Parliament - $56,000
- For parties with 6 or more members of Parliament - $96,000
The Electoral Commissioner paid the amounts shown in the table below for one-off special assistance payment in 2017. These payments were in addition to any entitlements to half yearly payments of special assistance funding paid under Division 5 of the Act.
| Party | Claim |
| Australian Labor Party | $96,000.00 |
| Liberal Party | $96,000.00 |
| The Greens | $10,013.79 |
| Dignity Party | $43,861.44 |
| Total | $245,875.23 |