Electoral regions

How the regions came about

For most of its history the Legislative Council was organised differently — as provinces with staggered terms and, for long periods, a restricted franchise. Reform in the early 2000s replaced that system.

From the 2006 state election, Victoria has used eight multi-member regions, each returning five members at a general election by proportional representation (group voting tickets were later abolished; today’s ballots use optional preferential above-the-line voting under current law — always check the VEC for the rules in force).

The pattern is fixed: five metro regions covering greater Melbourne and three large country regions (Northern, Eastern and Western Victoria). The 2021 redivision redrew district lines inside those regions and adjusted region edges so each still holds eleven Assembly seats; one region name was updated in that process. Those boundaries applied at the 2022 election and remain in force for 2026.

• Five metropolitan regions — denser population, small land area: Northern, Southern, North-Eastern, South-Eastern and Western Metropolitan.
• Three non-metropolitan regions — Northern, Eastern and Western Victoria: most of the state’s land mass, including regional cities and vast rural districts such as Mildura, Lowan and Gippsland East.
• Equal seats, unequal land — every region elects five MLCs, but country regions cover far more square kilometres. Representation is by enrolled electors, not by area.