Overview
The Electoral (Accountability and Integrity) Amendment Act 2024 introduced significant reforms to the Electoral Act 1985. These reforms, effective from 1 July 2025, aim to enhance transparency, accountability, and fairness in South Australia's electoral system.
Key reform areas
Prohibitions on donations and loans
One of the most significant changes introduced by the reforms is the ban on political donations and loans for electoral purposes. This includes monetary contributions, discounted services, or any support intended to influence electoral outcomes.
However, to ensure fairness and support participation, new parties and candidates, defined under the Act as regulated designated participants, may access public funding up to a set amount, provided they meet eligibility requirements such as registration duration, vote thresholds, and evidence of electoral expenditure.
Electoral donations
- Donations to registered political parties, candidates, MPs, and third parties are prohibited. This includes:
- Monetary contributions
- Discounted goods or services
- Any other support intended to influence electoral outcomes
Note: Levies on MP and staffer salaries are exempt.
Electoral loans
Loans are treated as donations and are generally banned. Exceptions apply only in limited cases, such as:
- Loans from a party’s nominated entity
- Loans not deposited into a campaign account
- Loans used solely for administrative costs
Associated entities
If an associated entity receives a loan, it’s treated as if the political party received it, meaning the same rules apply.
Breaches of these provisions may result in penalties, including fines and deregistration of political parties.
Exceptions for regulated participants
While the reforms prohibit most political donations and loans, regulated designated participants may still receive donations and loans within strict limits. These include individual caps of $5,000 per donor or lender per financial year, and aggregate caps tied to expenditure limits during election periods. All donations and loans must be properly disclosed and managed through registered state campaign accounts.
👉 Learn more about donations and loan limits for regulated participants
Public funding
As part of the electoral reforms, new public funding arrangements have been introduced to support both registered political parties and eligible candidates.
Administrative funding:
- Designed to support the day-to-day operations of eligible political parties.
- Includes one-off and ongoing payments for costs such as office expenses, staff salaries, and administrative systems.
- Strictly limited to non-political use — funds must not be used for campaigning or electoral activities.
👉 Learn more on our administrative funding page
Advance funding:
- Available to parties participating in general or by-elections.
- Allows access to public funding before election results are finalised.
- Subject to:
- Certification of eligibility
- Deduction from future entitlements based on actual performance.
👉 Learn more on our advance funding page
Policy development funding:
- Provides up to $20,000 per year (2026 indexed) to eligible parties
- Intended to support activities such as:
- hosting policy forums, seminars, and meetings
- research and analysis for policy creation
- Communicating policy ideas to members and supporters.
- Cannot be used for political or electoral expenditure
- Claims must be submitted to ECSA within 30 days after the end of the calendar year.
👉 Learn more on our policy development funding page
State campaign accounts
A state campaign account is a dedicated financial institution account that must be used by political participants in South Australian state elections to manage donations, public funding, and political expenditure. These accounts are required for candidates, groups, registered political parties, and third parties*.
* Third parties only need a state campaign account if they receive amounts that must be paid into one under the Act.
👉 Learn more on our state campaign accounts page
Party registration and eligibility
South Australia's electoral reforms have strengthened the requirements for political party registration to ensure transparency and accountability.
Waiting period
Parties must be registered for at least 8 months before becoming eligible for public funding and other entitlements.
Expanded registration requirements
Parties must provide detailed information about:- Their internal governance structures
- Membership rules
- The appointment of a compliance officer.
Ongoing obligations
Any changes to registration details must be reported to the Electoral Commission of South Australia (ECSA) within 14 days.
Audit powers
The Electoral Commissioner has the authority to audit party activities and documentation to verify compliance.
Expenditure regulations
To ensure fairness and prevent excessive spending in South Australian elections, the reforms introduced strict controls on political expenditure.
Expenditure caps
Political parties, candidates, third-party campaigners and groups of candidates in the Legislative Council are subject to maximum spending limits during designated periods. These caps apply to all electoral expenditure, including advertising, promotional materials, and campaign events.
Nominated entities
Nominated entities are prohibited from incurring political expenditure. This ensures that campaign spending is transparent and directly attributable to the party or candidate.
Oversight and recovery
ECSA monitors compliance with expenditure caps. If a party or candidate exceeds the permitted limit, ECSA may initiate recovery proceedings to reclaim overspend public funds.
Capped period
The expenditure limits apply during a defined campaign period, which is set by regulation and varies depending on the type of election.
👉 Learn more on our expenditure caps page
Third party regulation
Third parties that spend more than $10,000 on political activities must register with ECSA, submit financial returns, and comply with audit requirements.
👉 Learn more about third party obligations
Disclosure and compliance
Disclosure and compliance obligations have been strengthened under the 2024 reforms. Political participants must submit detailed financial returns, including nil returns and audit certificates, and comply with new penalties for non-compliance.
👉 Learn more about disclosure and compliance requirements
Agent and entity oversight
Agents play a key role in ensuring compliance with funding and disclosure obligations. Under the reforms, agents must be registered and may be subject to audits. Nominated and associated entities are also required to follow strict rules around financial reporting and campaign expenditure.