The previous two articles on the forthcoming Council election stressed the need to vote strategically if we wish to get locals elected to Council.
As Doug Kohlhoff advised, there are 17 candidates from our ālocalā area, some in groups and some ungrouped.
This article provides some background information on some of them and what they stand for.
Group B ā MidCoast Independents
This group is headed up by Thomas OāKeefe, a journalist from the News Of The Area (NOTA) local newspaper.
The candidates in this group are: Thomas OāKeefe, Bruce Murray, Jeanette Hart, Mal Motum, Terry Munright, Heather Vaughan
I asked Thomas to tell me about his group and their platform and this is what he provided:
What is your Platform?
Our Group is called āMidCoast Independentsā, and, as the name implies, we are truly independent of any party or other line. We seek to REPRESENT the local area in Council. Put simply, our platform is āFor Locals, For Community, For Actionā. We call the Council our āLocal Governmentā, but how local can it be, covering 10,000km2 and with no elected Councillors, nor unelected Directors/Managers, being from anywhere near our area? All of my Team Members are closely and intimately involved with several community service groups, and have each done much to improve our area as members of their groups, as well as private citizens. This election is a rare opportunity to get a local onto the Elected Council of MidCoast, to represent our forgotten and neglected communities, and to use the system to is fullest capability to achieve real action by delivering and promoting our local voice within Council itself. We believe in the inherent value of democratic legitimacy that comes form being elected to such a position, and will employ the Local Government Act to its fullest extent.
What will you do to make sure the southern area is properly represented?
Our first goal is Local Representation ā our agenda is to understand, articulate and represent the needs and concerns of the people of our area, which includes, but is by no means limited to: TGHN, NAC, Pindimar/Bundabah, Carrington, Tahlee, Nerong, Bulahdelah, Stroud, Markwell, and all surrounding locales here in the southern area. In an approach that will be seen as quite novel in the modern age, as an elected Councillor I will actually engage directly with these local communities, and make myself known and available to discuss the local issues that matter the most. I have done as much in my current role with the local newspaper, the Myall Coast NOTA, and will only be extending that service, amplified by the legitimacy and capacity that comes from being a Councillor. I and my Team actually enjoy going to the townships, meeting the people, listening to their concerns, and then seeking ways to actually do something about it all. We certainly will not be vanishing into the aether once elected, like so many politicians have done before ā I seek to be a true Representative, which is why I am not toeing any party line, too.
Further information on this group and the six candidates can be found in the attached file āMidCoast Independentsā.
Ungrouped local candidates
There are six local candidates who are ungrouped- Elizabeth McEntyre, Vivien Panhuber, Richard Streamer, John Sahyoun, Karen Hutchinson, Stephen Smith.
Vivien Panhuber, who is the President of the Pindimar/Bundabah Community Association, provided me with information on her platform and the suggested voting order for these ungrouped candidates ā see attached file āVivien Panhuber Informationā.
Vivien will be dropping in to Coffee in the Cove tomorrow 31 August if you would like to meet her.
29% of the candidates comeā¦
29% of the candidates come from the southern end of MidCoast but only 9% of the voters. Why? A lot of people down this way must be really dissatisfied with MidCoast Council. We need someone local on Council.
In the last MidCoast election around 5500 hundred votes were cast in the council area from Stroud/Bulahdelah south. A quota to get a councillor elected was 5142. If we had somehow consolidated that "local" vote, we might have had enough votes to get one local candidate elected.
With 17 "local" candidates this time, our votes are likely to be dispersed more than ever before. Just putting [1] above one of the groups might be a formal vote but it will probably be a wasted vote. Even voting [1] [2] for groups B and F is unlikely to see someone elected. We really need to vote below the line 1-17 for the 17 local candidates to maximise our chances of having a local elected.