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New Councils

Hills Shire Council welcomed new Mayor Dr Michelle Byrne and the 12 newly elected councllors at a special meeting on Thursday, 3rd October to publicly swear them in.

It was a tight race for the 12th council seat with Greens’ councillor Dr Mila Kasby only finding out at the declaration on Tuesday afternoon (1st October) at the Hills Electoral Commission Office that she had secured the last vacant seat on council, just 114 votes ahead of Labor’s Dilvan Bircan after the eighth count.

An application by the Labor party for a recount on Wednesday (2nd October) was dismissed by the Electoral Commissioner who said there were insufficient grounds to warrant a ninth count.

There was an 88.72 percent turn out in North Ward. Liberal Mitchel Blue secured his second Term on council with first preferences votes after Liberals gained 63.92% of the vote. The huge vote meant that Liberal Jacob Jackson who was first elected to Hills Shire council in August 2018 and served for three years, was also elected.

While the results of those two seats were known after the polls closed at 6pm on election day, September 14th, there was a lot of movement on the third seat with Labor initially ahead.

Counting didn’t begin on the sizable number of Postal votes until Monday, September 30th followed by preference distribution.

Councillor Kasby said it had been a roller coaster ride until the vote was declared. The three new faces on Hills council are all from the Labor Party: Tina Cartwright, Immanuel Selvaraj and Jane Grevtseva who won the third seat on East Ward by 612 votes ahead of Greens candidate Suzannah McDonald on the eighth count after distribution of preferences.

Of the 8 Liberal councillors elected, Frank Di Masi, Reena Jethi, Mitchell Blue, Rosemarie Boneham and Jermome Cox have been on council for the past four year term. Liberal councillors Sam Uno, Alan Haselden and Jacob Jackson are returning after a four year break.

HAWKESBURY RESULTS
At Hawkesbury Council there was a lot of counting with the final 3 seats only decided after the 59th count.

With 10 Groups and a total of 62 candidates vying for the 12 seats on Hawkesbury City Council preferences were always going to be important.

In the end the Liberal Party claimed four seats and the Labor Party was reduced to just one seat with the Independent team led by Mary Lyons-Buckett picking up a seat. Under the banner of People Not Parties, it now has a second representative on council with Dr Tom Aczel claiming a seat on the 59th count of preferences. Also elected on the 59th count were Liberal’s Paul Veigel and Independent Les Sheather who are both returning councillors. As there isn’t a ward system in Hawkesbury all 12 represent the whole city.

The 12 councillors declared for Hawkesbury City Council are in the order they were on the Ballot Paper:
• Greens: Danielle Wheeler
• IND Group B: Mary Lyons-Buckett and Tom Aczel
• Labor: Amanda Kotlash
• IND Group D: Les Sheather
• Shooters, Fishers and Farmers: Shane Djuric
• IND Group H: Nathan Zamprogno
• Liberals: Sarah McMahon, Mike Creed, Jill Reardon and Paul Veigel
• Small Business Party: Eddie Dogramaci

The first meeting of Hawkesbury City Council is scheduled for Tuesday, October 15th. The Hawkesbury Mayor and Deputy Mayor are elected by councillors rather than by electors.

HILLS MAYOR

Dr Michelle Byrne returned to the Mayoral Chair she had last occupied from 2017 to 2021 on Thursday, October 3rd, saying she was grateful for the community’s continued trust and support.

The mother of three and proud longtime Hills resident, was first elected to The Hills Shire Council in 2008 and became the youngest Mayor in the Council’s history at the age of 33 in 2012. Five years later she made history again as the first popularly elected Hills Mayor.

At Thursday’s meeting she said: “ I am committed to working as hard as I can to ensure Council delivers for our community over the next four years.

“Our priority will be delivering essential infrastructure and facilities, such as parks and sports fields, and improving our local roads to support the rapid population growth particularly in The Hills’ designated growth areas.”

“The new Council brings fresh perspectives and an unwavering dedication to serving our community. Together, we will focus on ensuring The Hills receives the necessary infrastructure while preserving its unique, family-friendly, and its semi-rural character in the northern parts of our region,” she added.

Mayor Byrne also reiterated her commitment to advocating for better infrastructure and resisting overdevelopment “We will continue to make significant investments in our local facilities. We will also advocate for the NSW Government to take responsibility and fund more parks, sports fields, build more schools, and upgrade local roads to support the rapid population growth – something that they have enabled through their density policies such as the Transport Oriented Development and low to mid-rise housing.”

“I am also determined to lead the fight against overdevelopment, protecting the region’s family- friendly environment, and ensuring a supportive atmosphere for local businesses to flourish,”

She welcomed the new Hills Shire Councillors:

  • NORTH WARD
  • Mitchell Blue (Lib)
  • Jacob Jackson (Lib)
  • Clr Mila Kasby (Greens)
  • EAST WARD
  • Samuel Uno (Lib)
  • Alan Haselden (Lib)
  • Jane Grevtseva (ALP)
  • WEST WARD
  • Frank De Masi (Lib)
  • Rosemarie Boneham (LIB)
  • Clr Immanuel Selvaraj (ALP)
  • Central Ward
  • Clr Reena Jethi (Lib)
  • Clr Jerome Cox (Lib)
  • Clr Tina Cartwright (ALP)

The first Ordinary Meeting of Council is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 8 October.

Bev Jordan

Bev Jordan studied journalism at Harlow College in the UK.  She achieves a Diploma in Journalism from the National Council for the Training of Journalists. After migrating to Australia at the end of 1984, she took up a Senior Journalist position with Cumberland Newspapers, based on the Parramatta Advertiser. She has since worked on the Daily Telegraph, Sydney Morning Herald and was a lecturer in Journalism at Macleay College in Sydney. Bev returned to Cumberland Newspapers (NewsLocal) and worked for 30 years covering all different mastheads, including Mosman Daily, Mount Druitt Standard and finally Hills Shire Times for the last… More »

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