Candidates finalised for 2025 federal election

THE field contesting this year’s federal election has been set, with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) releasing the final list of candidates for the House of Representatives and the Senate last Friday 11 April.

Australians will head to the polls in less than three weeks on 3 May.

The AEC conducted blind draws to randomly determine the ballot paper order in electorate offices across Australia.

The region’s candidates are listed here in ballot paper order:

BALLARAT (7 candidates)

HAWKE (7 candidates)

In Victoria, there are 65 Senate candidates, including 19 group tickets.

Early voting opens on April 22, and applications for a postal vote close at 6pm on April 30.

The AEC says a record 98.2 per cent of eligible Australians are enrolled to vote in the federal election, representing 18,098,797 people.

The roll has increased by 870,000 people since the 2022 federal election, a rise of 5.0 per cent.

For more information on how and where to vote, head to aec.gov.au/Voting/ways_to_vote/