Candidates locked in for Surf Coast Shire council election

THE field is set for the Surf Coast Shire council election, with 20 candidates vying to win the eight seats on offer.
There are nine seats on the council, but Gary Allen stood unopposed in Lorne Ward and has been automatically elected – his predecessor, Clive Goldworthy, did the same in 2016 – making him one of this year’s 26 uncontested individual elections in which the number of candidates is equal to the number of vacancies.
Torquay Ward will be the most hotly-contested of the three wards, with 10 candidates throwing their hat in the ring – an increase of four from the previous election.
Unlike the previous election, however, the next group of four Torquay Ward councillors will have at least one new face, with Rose Hodge, David Bell and Martin Duke seeking re-election but Brian McKiterick not contesting his seat.
Change is also afoot in Anglesea Ward.
In 2016, incumbent councillors Libby Coker and Margot Smith were two of the three candidates and were successful in in re-election. Ms Coker has since moved to federal politics and was replaced by Tony Revell in August 2019 but Cr Smith will not stand again, leaving a field of five candidates and at least one new councillor.
There is a similar field of five candidates in Winchelsea Ward – the same as last time.
Incumbent councillors Heather Wellington and James McIntyre are attempting to hold their seats against three other contenders. It will be Cr McIntyre’s first general election, as he was elected on countback after the resignation of Carol McGregor in July 2019.
Across Victoria, 2,187 candidates nominated for 622 council vacancies in 298 separate elections following the close of nominations and ballot draws last week.
The number of candidates this year is higher than the 2,135 candidates who nominated for 636 councillor vacancies in 222 separate elections at the 2016 council elections.
For more information, including all candidate questionnaires and the ballot paper order for all three wards, head to vec.vic.gov.au/voting/2020-local-council-election/elections/surf-coast-shire-council.
For even more detail about who’s standing in this election, check out the candidate profiles in next week’s edition of the Surf Coast Times.