As the nation's capital, Canberra is home to democracy in Australia.
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For the next week it will also be the home of Indigenous democracy as elections for the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body (ATSIEB) take place.
Voting began on Saturday and will last until July 8, with 25 candidates in the running for seven positions on the elected body, serving over a three-year term.
Office for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs director Robyn Forester said the elected body would help to provide an Indigenous voice to many of the important decisions made throughout the ACT.
"The elected body is really about providing advice and bringing forward issues and concerns in the community," she said.
"Their role is to liaise with the community and be a voice for them and bring those issues and concerns of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that are affecting the local population."
This year's election is the largest since the body was established in 2008, with a record number of candidates vying for positions, with a majority of those being women.
There will be 24 opportunities over the coming week for Indigenous people living in Canberra to vote.
Polling booths will be set up at the NAIDOC Family Day at the University of Canberra on Sunday, as well as locations in Narrabundah, Dickson, Gungahlin and Belconnen.
The ACT is the only state or territory in the country to have an elected body of Indigenous people, and Mrs Forester said she hoped for other areas to follow suit.
"This is very much a template for other jurisdictions, and we're now going into out fourth election," she said.
"The ACT government at the time wanted to make sure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in other jurisdictions can look at our template and do something similar."
A similar model to ATSIEB was also proposed at the Uluru convention earlier this year.
Dean of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership and strategy at the University of Canberra, Peter Radoll, said the elected body played a vital role in the territory.
"When you have an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander voice in the mix of decisions, you can have much better outcomes," he said.
"The beautiful thing about the elected body is that it isn't about tapping anyone on the shoulder to be a part of it, it's a true representative body of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people who elected them."
