Candidates put hands up for Victorian treaty assembly

Some 75 candidates have thrown their hats in the ring to become members of the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria, the body set to start negotiating a statewide treaty later this year.

There are 22 elected seats, with the remaining 11 reserved for representatives of formally recognised traditional owner groups.

In addition to a Victorian treaty, the body will work with traditional owners negotiating local treaties and is expected to interact with a federal voice to parliament if the upcoming referendum is successful.

The assembly's second term will begin once the voting results are revealed in late June, with 14 members seeking re-election.

Several relatives and allies of independent senator Lidia Thorpe are among dozens of candidates.

Senator Thorpe quit the Greens earlier this year over a dispute about the voice to parliament and has previously aired concerns about the treaty process in Victoria.

The assembly's inaugural co-chair Aunty Geraldine Atkinson encouraged all eligible Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Victoria to register to vote.

"How strong Treaty is, how much it improves the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across this state, depends on mob getting involved with these Treaty elections now," she said.

Voting is open from May 13 to June 3 and can be done online, via post or in person.