Murraylands mayors reluctantly accept council election delay

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Three Murraylands mayors have agreed to stay on as long as they are needed in the face of a delay to the upcoming council elections.

Elections were due to be held this November for 67 of South Australia’s local councils.

But the Electoral Commission of SA asked for a delay last week, following problems with March’s state election; and on Wednesday it was granted an extra five months to get the job done.

So long as legislation gets through state parliament this week, the council elections will be held next April.

The delay will make things awkward for many mayors and councillors, and especially those who had already announced plans to step down – including Mid Murray Mayor Simone Bailey.

However, she told Murray Bridge News she would continue to serve until the election, whenever it might be.

“My focus remains on serving my community,” she said.

“I’m the sort of person who’ll see (this term) through to make sure ratepayers get the representation they deserve.”

The delay was not ideal, she said, and should have been announced much earlier.

But “decisions need to be made based on what best protects the integrity of the election process”.

Also left in an awkward spot was acting Coorong Mayor Jonathan Pietzsch, who has been filling in for an unwell Paul Simmons since December.

He, too, said he would be willing to serve for the extra five months.

In fact, he said many in local government circles had anticipated a delay as long as 12 months ago.

But having the election early in the year would not be ideal – that was the time when councillors were normally preparing their annual budgets.

Murray Bridge Mayor Wayne Thorley criticised the proposed election date, too, for the same reason.

But he acknowledged that a delay of some kind was appropriate.

“I think my councillors are comfortable that there may be a small extension to their terms,” he said.

“They are a hard-working council which is collegiate and works very strongly to get the best outcomes for the community … and I think they will see this as an opportunity to get some more work done.”

Local government sector had wanted a date change, but not like this

The peak body for South Australia’s councils, LGA SA, had long campaigned for a longer gap between state and local elections.

Both are held every four years, and traditionally in the same year.

LGA president Heather Holmes-Ross also acknowledged that the integrity of local elections was critically important.

But she noted that councils had been preparing for November elections for a long time – signage has already started to appear around the Murraylands – and that the late change would make things difficult.

“Any additional costs arising from the election deferral, including costs associated withElectoral Commission resourcing or operational issues, should not be passed on to ratepayers,” she said.

“LGA will continue to advocate for arrangements that enable councils to set budgets, undertake strategic decision-making and continue delivering services to their communities without unnecessary disruption.”

State Local Government Minister Rhiannon Pearce had insisted that the delay was needed.

“Deferring the elections is a sensible response to ensure the integrity of our electoral processes and give South Australians faith in the management and oversight of these important elections,” she said.
“Local government services are vitally important to South Australian communities, and it’s imperative that voters have faith in the electoral processes and institutions that help determine council leadership.”

ECSA’s request suggested it would not be able to recruit enough staff for council elections, and that its processes were inadequate for the task.

How do council elections work?

Unlike state and federal elections, voting in local government elections is voluntary and done via Australia Post.

Ballot papers are sent to all enrolled residents and property owners, who typically have about a month to fill them in and send them back.

About 36 per cent of eligible voters took part in Murray Bridge’s mayoral election in 2022.

Turnout was 55% in the Coorong, where Mr Simmons was returned as mayor with support from a group of candidates calling themselves Coorong Unites; and 44% in the Mid Murray district, where Ms Bailey succeeded Dave Burgess as mayor.

• More information: www.councilelections.sa.gov.au.