By NICHOLAS COMINO FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA

Published: 04:37 BST, 29 May 2025 | Updated: 06:00 BST, 29 May 2025

A young Melbourne woman has sparked backlash by complaining about being fined $100 for failing to vote in a local election. 

The woman explained she did not vote in last year’s Victorian local council elections in a TikTok video with over 300,000 views on Wednesday. 

‘So I have just been fined for not voting in an election I was apparently meant to have voted in,’ she says while holding the fine aloft. 

‘This is the Melbourne City Council 2024 election?

‘I’m sorry, since when did it become compulsory to vote in local council elections? I’m very aware that voting is a privilege. That’s not the issue here.’

The woman explains that she has consistently voted in both federal and state elections since becoming eligible, but insists she was unaware of her obligation to vote in local council elections.

‘I’ve never voted in a local council election. I never heard anything about it,’ she says.

According to the woman, the first she heard about the matter was when she received an infringement notice in the mail.

‘This infringement notice turns up in my mailbox for “No response for apparent failure to vote notice”. I never received that notice,’ she said. 

‘I never got the notice to vote in the first place and I’m fuming, because now I have to pay a $99 fine.’

The video divided viewers, with some mocking the woman for not knowing that voting is compulsory. 

‘Girl, read the comments, take accountability and delete this. This was not the take you thought it was,’ one said. 

‘Pay the fine and don’t waste your vote next time is the best advice we can give you,’ another commented. 

Popular Aussie content creator Matt Hey, known online as Alright Hey, also weighed in, writing: ‘……… girl please delete this xx.’

Others pointed out that voting has always been compulsory in Australia.

‘It’s always been compulsory, no matter what election in Australia,’ one said. 

Users criticised the woman for not knowing that she had to vote in council elections

Users criticised the woman for not knowing that she had to vote in council elections

But others came to the woman’s defence, arguing the issue went far beyond simply forgetting to vote.

‘Lots of people in the comments bagging her, listen to the whole video,’ one said. 

‘She never received the voting papers in the first place, and never received a failure to vote notice. It’s fair to complain about the way this process has gone.’

In Victoria, local council elections are conducted entirely by postal vote according to the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC). 

Enrolled voters are sent ballot packs that are then sent back to the VEC. 

The woman claims she never received this ballot pack, nor any follow-up notice.

While voting in all levels of government elections is compulsory in Australia, turnout at the 2024 City of Melbourne council election was just 67.73 per cent.

Out of 136,502 enrolled voters, 44,047 failed to cast their vote.

That figure stands in stark contrast to the 2025 federal election for the seat of Melbourne which saw 88.07 per cent of enrolled voters participate. 

The VEC and Melbourne City Council have been contacted by Daily Mail Australia.

:
Young Aussie torn to shreds after revealing why she was fined $100

***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk