Geelong - Governance

Governance

In local government, the Geelong region is covered by the City of Greater Geelong. The council was created in 1993 as an amalgamation of a number of other municipalities in the region, with the council chambers located at the Geelong Town Hall in central Geelong. The City is made up of 12 wards, each represented by a councillor elected once every four years by postal voting. The Mayor of Geelong is elected from these councillors by their colleagues for a one year term.

In state politics, Geelong is located in the Legislative Assembly districts of Geelong, South Barwon, Lara, and Bellarine, with all seats with the exception of South Barwon currently held by the Australian Labor Party.

In federal politics, Geelong is located in two House of Representatives divisions - the Division of Corio to the north of the Barwon River, and the Division of Corangamite to the south. The Division of Corio has been a safe Australian Labor Party since the 1970s, and was the seat of Richard Casey, a leading Cabinet member in the 1930s and later Governor-General, and Gordon Scholes, who was Speaker during the Whitlam government. The Division of Corangamite had been a safe seat for the Liberal Party since the 1940s, and was the seat of the ninth Prime Minister of Australia James Scullin. It was reclaimed by the Australian Labor Party for the first time since 1931 at the 2007 federal election.