Federal independent candidate Zoe Daniel has won her Supreme Court case to allow supporters to put political signs in front yards, after Liberal MP Tim Wilson raised concerns with Bayside Council.
Ms Daniel’s campaign manager took Bayside City Council to court this month to challenge the signage ban it announced in late February.
The council cited advice from the Australian Electoral Commission as a reason for its decision to ban signs, when, in fact, all it had done was send a query to a commission help desk asking about potential federal election dates.
Tim Wilson and challenger Zoe Daniel.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen, Simon Schluter
But on Wednesday morning, Justice John Dixon overturned the ban and suggested Bayside Council would likely be asked to pay the court costs of Ms Daniel’s team.
The council had relied on state planning laws – and misread them, according to Planning Minister Richard Wynne – to rule that political signs were not allowed to be displayed in residential front yards.
Those who did so were threatened with a $909 fine. However, all fines issued were put on hold while the Supreme Court made its decision.
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