Electoral Act 1907

A non‑party candidate in an election may apply to the returning officer before the close of nominations to have the word “Independent” printed adjacent to the candidate’s name on the ballot papers for the election.

An application under subsection (1) must —

be in an approved form; and

be signed by the candidate; and

if the name of the candidate is to be included in a group — be in the form of a joint application by all the candidates to be included in the group to have the word “Independent” printed adjacent to the name of each of those candidates.

If an application under subsection (1) is received by the returning officer before the close of nominations and the returning officer is satisfied that the application is in accordance with subsection (2), a ballot paper must —

include the word “Independent” adjacent to the candidate’s name; or

if the ballot paper is for a Council election and the application is for a group under subsection (2)(c) —

include the word “Independent” adjacent to the name of each candidate in the group; and

if there is an above‑the‑line square printed for the group on the ballot paper — include the word “Independent” adjacent to that square.

If an application under subsection (1) is received by the Electoral Commissioner, it is taken to have been received by the returning officer when it was received by the Electoral Commissioner.