Greg Mackie wins Adelaide City Council by-election, will replace Houssam Abiad in Town Hall
A history buff and former bookseller will return to Town Hall, vowing to be an independent voice in the chamber.
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History Trust of South Australia chief executive Greg Mackie will make a return to Adelaide City Council after winning the Central Ward by-election.
Mr Mackie, who was first elected to the council in 2000 and unsuccessfully ran for lord mayor in 2003, won with 28.24 per cent of first-preference votes.
Gouger St Traders Association president Wayne Chao came in second, with 20.19 per cent of the vote, followed by former Property Council SA chief Nathan Paine, with 16.76 per cent.
Mr Mackie replaces former deputy lord mayor Houssam Abiad, who resigned in January to take up a job in Saudi Arabia.
He will be an independent voter in the chamber.
Almost 19 per cent of 11,689 ratepayers in the ward voted.
Mr Mackie said he did not expect to win and was “truly humbled” to return to the council.
“Serving from 2000 until 2003 as an elected member was absolutely full on, and there are battle scars to show for that, however, I never once demurred from the belief that service in local government is something completely worthy,” he said.
He said helping the council recover from the economic impacts of COVID-19 would be among his top priorities.
“This is not going to be an easy term of council by any stretch of the imagination, and difficult decisions are going to have to be made,” he said.
Mr Mackie, the founder of the Adelaide Festival of Ideas, operated Imprints bookshop on Hindley St for 20 years and was president of Adelaide’s West End Association.
He later became executive director of Arts SA, and rose to deputy chief executive in the Department of Premier and Cabinet under the Rann Labor government.
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Deputy Lord Mayor Alexander Hyde looked forward to working with Mr Mackie.
“Greg is a formidable candidate and I look forward to working with him on issues,” Cr Hyde said.
“However, it is ironic to position yourself as a peacemaker when you have been backed by Anne Moran, Phil Martin, Robert Simms, Mark Hamilton and Jane Lomax-Smith.”
Cr Simms disagreed, calling called Mr Mackie a “respected independent leader (in the) city for decades”.
“I welcome this opportunity for a fresh start and a new dynamic in Town Hall,” Cr Simms said.
Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor said Mr Mackie would bring a “great depth” of experience at a challenging time for the community.
The next council meeting is in June.