State Library Victoria wants your election campaign material

State Library Victoria is calling on all Victorians to help build the state's largest democracy archive ahead of the upcoming November election. 

Victorians are encouraged to collect all kinds of state election material including how-to-vote cards, flyers, badges and balloons, and send them via reply paid post to the Library. 

The material will be preserved in the Riley and Ephemera Collection which documents political and social movements from the mid-19th century to the present day. 

State Library Victoria CEO Vicki McDonald AM FALIA said the Library hopes to receive donations from right across the state. 

'We want the Riley and Ephemera Collection to capture the issues and concerns that are important to people from all parts of Melbourne and regional and rural Victoria. 

‘The collection is a significant historical archive, it is apolitical, and we welcome donations from all political parties, independent candidates, community interest groups and Victorians.’ 

Director of Collections and Chief Librarian Roxanne Missingham OAM is also focussed on collecting born-digital campaign material. 

'With so much campaign action happening online and on social media, the Library is actively collecting campaign emails, websites, digital newsletters, and social media content. 

'This ensures that the collection remains relevant and will assist future generations of historians and researchers.' 

The Riley and Ephemera Collection is named after Frederick J Riley, a unionist and politician, who deposited his political ephemera with the Library from 1956 to 1969. 

The collection comprises thousands of files of election ephemera, social justice movements and campaign material from right across the political spectrum.   

From election fortune cookies to Donald Trump toilet paper, the Riley and Ephemera Collection is a fascinating and unmediated record of the issues that have driven political and social change in Victoria. 

How to donate:  

Printed campaign or election-related material should be placed in an envelope and addressed to: 

Riley and Ephemera Collection 
Legal deposit 
State Library Victoria 
328 Swanston Street 
Reply Paid 69565 
Melbourne Vic 3000 
Australia 

Members of the public can forward campaign emails, digital newsletters, links to websites, YouTube videos and other digital election campaign material to legaldeposit@slv.vic.gov.au 

People can also drop in election material to their local public library anywhere in Victoria and it will be sent to State Library Victoria. 

Political candidates, parties, community groups and organisations should deposit all published state election content with the Library. Hardcopies can be sent via post. Digital copies can be uploaded to the National Library's e-portal (ned.gov.au).  

More information at slv.au/collection-pol-ephemera 

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