9 August 2024
By Grahame Lynch
North Sydney Council is planning to hold the last councillor meeting of its current term on 26 August, even with the campaign for the 14 September election likely to be on in earnest.
A motion before the council’s meeting scheduled for Monday night proposes that the 26 August meeting go ahead, albeit with the council in caretaker mode. A 9 September meeting will be cancelled.
The final lineup of candidates will be known as early as this Wednesday when nominations close. The ballot paper draw will take place on Thursday.
According to a motion from the council’s governance unit to be considered on Monday, “As the caretaker period prior to elections will run from 16 August to 14 September 2024, the 9 September Council is five days before the election and meeting will be subject to the caretaker provisions.”
“By cancelling the 9 September meeting, which is scheduled in the week prior to the elections, more focus can be made on the planning for the new Council term, including the induction of newly elected councillors.”
“Should Council resolve to approve this change to the schedule, the last Council meeting of the term will be on Monday 26 August and subject to caretaker provisions. While an Extraordinary Meeting will be held once the outcome of the election is known, this will be called at that time. No meeting dates after the elections have been scheduled, to allow the newly elected Council to determine its own meeting cycle.”
At this stage, sitting councillors Zoe Baker (mayor, Real Independents), MaryAnn Beregi (Real Independents), Godfrey Santer (deputy mayor, Labor) and Shannon Welch (Labor) have nominated with the NSW Electoral Commission to run again for the next term. It is also expected that there will be Liberal-aligned tickets in both wards and that Cr James Spenceley, an independent, will run again. Independent Michael Chandler and Australian Democrat Adam Baudelaire are running in St Leonards Ward and the Sustainable Australia party has nominated Sarah Kok to run in Cammeraygal Ward, apparently replacing Georgia Lamb who was elected as a councillor for the party three years ago. It is unclear at this stage whether Lamb or other sitting councillors William Bourke, Ian Mutton, Jilly Gibson and John Lepouris intend to seek re-election.