<P> In an electoral system, a deposit is the sum of money that a candidate for an elected office, such as a seat in a legislature, is required to pay to an electoral authority before he or she is permitted to stand for election . </P> <P> In the typical case, the deposit collected is repaid to the candidate after the poll if the candidate obtains a specified proportion of the votes cast . The purpose of the deposit is to reduce the prevalence of' fringe' candidates or parties with no realistic chance of winning a seat . If the candidate does not achieve the refund threshold, the deposit is forfeited . </P> <P> In Australia, a candidate for the Australian House of Representatives is required to pay a deposit of $1000, and a candidate for the Australian Senate is required to pay a deposit of $2000 . The deposit is refunded if the candidate or group gains at least 4% of first preference votes in the relevant electoral division . The states have other deposit requirements and repayment thresholds . </P>

When do you lose your deposit in an election
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