About ECSA
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The Electoral Commission of South Australia (ECSA) is an independent agency and aims to ensure that demands for electoral services and participation in the democratic processes have been met fairly, honestly and within the law. The minister responsible is the Special Minister of State. ECSA provides professional and impartial electoral services for South Australians.
In 1907 the State Electoral Department was created as an independent office responsible for the conduct and administration of parliamentary elections in South Australia. The State Electoral Department became the State Electoral Office in 1993 and the Electoral Commission SA in 2009. The Electoral Commission of South Australia was the first electoral administration in the world to use computer technology to produce an electoral roll, the first prototype roll scanner, and the development and use of cardboard ballot boxes and voting compartments. We are constantly reviewing our work practices to ensure the quality of our electoral services and products.
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Our Organisation |
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Electoral Commissioner of South Australia
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Deputy Electoral Commissioner
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Our Organisation Structure
What we do
The Electoral Commission of South Australia is legislatively responsible for:
- conducting and administering elections,
- ensuring electors are enrolled to vote,
- registering political parties, and
- maintaining the electoral roll in conjunction with the Australian Electoral Commission.
The Electoral Commission of South Australia's main functions are to conduct:
- State and Council elections every four years, including House of Assembly by-elections and council supplementary elections,
- to provide community awareness programs on the electoral system, and,
- to conduct elections for statutory authorities such as the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Executive Board, Super SA, Super SA Select, Funds SA, the Architectural Practice Board of South Australia, and the South Eastern Water Conservation and Drainage Board.
In addition, the Electoral Commission of South Australia also conducts fee-for-service elections and ballots for other organisations that require the appointment of an independent returning officer. These elections are generally conducted by post and include the election of office-bearers to committees and boards and also the conduct of enterprise agreement ballots.
The Electoral Commission SA conducts the entire election process in accordance with the organisation's constitution and/or election rules. Where the election rules are deficient, the Electoral Commission SA may provide advice on established electoral practices and processes, such as:
- provision of a list of eligible voters,
- nominations,
- methods of voting,
- informality,and
- counting procedures.
To conduct an election or ballot, the organisation must provide the Electoral Commission SA a certified list of eligible voters.
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Leah McLay
Deputy Electoral Commissioner
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Mick Sherry
Electoral Commissioner
Mick Sherry was appointed as the Electoral Commissioner of South Australia on 20 February 2017.
Prior to his appointment as Commissioner, Mr Sherry held roles at state and federal level including with South Australia Police, Western Australia Royal Commission into Police Corruption, Corruption and Crime Commission of Western Australia and the Victorian Office of Police Integrity.
In 2015 Mr Sherry was appointed as the Australian Electoral Officer for the Northern Territory and Manager of the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) Northern Territory office. During his time with the AEC, he was responsible for the conduct of the 2016 federal election in the Northern Territory and the 2016 redistribution of electoral divisions in the Northern Territory.
Mr Sherry holds a number of tertiary qualifications including a Master of Arts and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
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Electoral Commission of South Australia (ECSA) offers employment opportunities to work at the state or local government elections or South Australia’s First Nations Voice to Parliament election.
To be considered for employment, you will need to complete a Registration of Interest (ROI) in the ECSA Employment Portal but before you do, it is important you understand the eligibility requirements.
Eligibility requirements for employment
To work at an election, you must:
- not be active in political affairs or have an association with a political party or candidate. This ensures you do not compromise the strict neutrality of the Electoral Commission
- agree to undertake a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCHCC) if it is a requirement for your position, as identified in the ‘special conditions’ section of the relevant duty statement
- be at least 16 years of age at the time of receiving an offer of employment to work at a state election (as a Polling Assistant) or at least 18 years old for all other positions.
- be at least 18 years old of age at the time of receiving an offer of employment to work at a local government election
- have a unique email address. If you share an email address with another person who would like to work at an election event, you must each register with a unique email address. This ensures offers of employment are sent to the correct person
- read and agree to abide by ECSA's Code of Conduct for Electoral Officers. You do not need to complete or submit a Code of Conduct to ECSA as you will be asked to agree to the Code of Conduct as part of the registration process and again when you accept an offer of employment to enable ECSA to determine your eligibility for employment
In accordance with ECSA's Code of Conduct for Electoral Officers temporary election workers are required to act honestly, impartially, professionally, ethically, and courteously in the performance of their duties.
Note: you only need to complete one ROI to be considered for employment at all ECSA elections and it will take roughly 30 to 45 minutes to complete the 3 part process.
How to register your interest to work at an ECSA election
Commencing a Registration of Interest (ROI)
If have not previously completed a Registration of Interest (ROI) in the ECSA Employment Portal, you will need to register your interest in working at the state or local government elections or South Australia’s First Nations Voice to Parliament election.
To register your interest in working at an election, you will need to create an account in the ECSA Employment Portal using the URL https://candidate.aurion.cloud/ecsa/production/
If you have already started the ROI process, you can go straight to the sign-in page using the URL https://candidate.aurion.cloud/ecsa/production/signin.
If you have completed the ROI process (or need to update your information or add your bank, tax and super details) you can go straight to the sign-in page in the ECSA Employment Portal using the URL https://erm.aurion.cloud/ecsa/production/personnel/login.
Steps in registering
There are 3 steps in the ROI process:
- creating an account that includes answering ECSA's Code of Conduct for Electoral Officers eligibility questions
- confirming your email address and the creation of your account by answering the screening questionnaire
- finalising your registration by entering your bank, tax, and superannuation details.
Download the ECSA Employment Portal - Registration of Interest user guide. The guide is designed to walk you through creating a ROI step by step.
Note: the ECSA Employment Portal is locked between 3.30pm Tuesdays and 1pm Thursdays and you will not be able to finalise step 3 of your ROI, update your information or add your bank, super or tax details during this time.
Frequently asked questions
View the frequently asked questions page for more information on working at an ECSA election event including duty statements for available roles and district map.
Contact
If you need further assistance, please contact the ECSA Employment Desk on 1300 974 103 (9am to 5pm Monday to Friday) or email
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On this page
- Electoral advertising
- How to submit a complaint
- How to provide feedback
- SA First Nations Voice to Parliament
- What you can expect from us
- Confidentiality
- Feedback and complaints policy
Electoral advertising
If you are considering making an electoral complaint, please view the relevant electoral advertising page which provides the legislative provisions.
How to submit a complaint
Complaints must be in writing and must include appropriate evidence to support your allegation.
We deal with 2 types of complaints:
Electoral complaints: Complaints alleging a breach of electoral legislation.
Service complaints: Complaints about ECSA’s services and operations.
You can lodge a complaint using our online form:
How to provide feedback
Feedback on ECSA’s services and operations can be provided using our online form:
SA First Nations Voice to Parliament Election
If you are considering making a complaint relating to the SA First Nations Voice to Parliament Election, please view the separate page which provides the policy and online complaint form.
- Online Complaint Form
- SA Voice Complaints (go to website)
- Feedback and complaint Policy – SA First Nations Voice to Parliament election (PDF 230KB)
What you can expect from us
Where contact details are provided, we will acknowledge feedback and complaints within 2 business days. We aim to resolve most complaints within 5 business days.
Complex complaints may require information from third parties. We will advise on the time expected and keep stakeholders updated.
We will be clear about how a complaint has been resolved.
Confidentiality
We treat complaints and feedback confidentially. Any personal information provided in your feedback or complaint will be managed in accordance with relevant legal and policy requirements.
We may be required to disclose information to resolve the matter.
Where the parties involved in a complaint have publicised the matter, the Electoral Commissioner may confirm the existence of a complaint without discussing the details.
We may make public comment regarding feedback and complaints, to ensure electors are aware of a situation and have accurate information.
Feedback and complaints policy
We will treat all matters in a fair, unbiased and objective manner.
ECSA’s Feedback and Complaint Policy outlines the definitions, principles, and responsibilities for managing feedback and complaints. The policy is intended to ensure that ECSA manages feedback and complaints fairly, efficiently, and effectively.
The policy contains information about requesting a review of feedback or a service complaint.
Download ECSA's feedback and complaint policy (PDF, 303KB)