Council
5 August, 2025
Ready, set... vote!
THE Electoral Commission of Queensland (ECQ) has announced the date for Somerset Council’s by-election as Saturday, September 13, 2025.
Over 20,000 people in Somerset will return to the polls to choose a replacement councillor, with the by-election set to be a full postal ballot for all enrolled Somerset residents. There will be no polling places for voters to attend.
Electoral Commissioner Pat Vidgen said nominations for the councillor position are now open. He encourages anyone interested in representing their community to nominate before 12 noon on Thursday August 14, 2025.
“When nominating, several important steps must be taken, so I urge anyone interested to do this as soon as possible,” Mr Vidgen said. Potential candidates must make sure they are eligible to nominate, pay a deposit of $250, open a dedicated campaign bank account and complete the free ‘So you want to be a councillor’ online training through the Department of Local Government, Water and Volunteers website.
Each independent candidate must be endorsed by at least six eligible nominators currently enrolled in Somerset Regional Council. Information for candidates is available on the Election Participants page of the ECQ’s website.
“Postal vote materials will be mailed to each voter, so it’s important to make sure your enrolment details are up to date,” he said. If you enrolled to vote with a postal address that is different from your enrolled address, your postal vote materials will be mailed to the postal address.
If you need your postal vote materials mailed to a different address, have moved and need to change your address or are enrolling for the first time, you must update your details or enrol by 5pm on Monday August 11, 2025 at the Australian Electoral Commission’s website.
“Postal votes will be sent shortly after the close of nominations and the draw for ballot paper order is finalised,” said Mr Vidgen. “Please keep an eye out for your ballot materials in the mail,” he said.
The Somerset Regional Council by-election results from the resignation of Councillor Kylee Isidro on 24 June 2025. While the cost of the by-election is not yet known, it could be as high as $200,000, as the 2024 local government election cost Council $199,814.
It is understood that expenses associated with the by-election were not accounted for in Council’s 2025-2026 Budget. “A budget review will likely be required during this fiscal cycle,” Mayor Jason Wendt said. “We don’t know the exact cost of running the by-election, this will be determined by the ECQ.
“We want to make this process as simple and cost-effective as possible for our residents, who have already had local, State and Federal elections in the past two years.”
Keep up to date with the Somerset Regional Council by-election at the ECQ’s website or on social media @electoralcommissionqld. You can also call us on 1300 881 665 for more information.
