Girl power takes over the South Burnett with majority female council
The South Burnett Regional Council elections have been finalised with a new mayor and four new councillors, with newcomer Heath Sander the only man in the mix.
South Burnett
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The South Burnett Regional Council elections have been finalised with a new mayor and four new councillors including the only man in the mix, newcomer Heath Sander.
Kathy Duff, Gavin Jones and Kirstie Schumacher gave up their council seats to run for mayor, with Ms Duff emerging as the victor.
Former councillor Ros Heit returned for a rematch against Scott “Hook” Henschen and came out on top with a stunning landslide victory.
Incumbents Danita Potter and Jane Erkens retained their seats respectively.
Meet your new South Burnett Regional Council here:
Mayor – Kathy Duff
From Burnett grazier to businesswoman, former councillor and now Mayor, Kathy Duff is eager to start her new job.
“I’m ready to just get things going,” she said days after the election.
“What we’ve lost is that sense of community feeling, the council being close to the people where you get that customer service, we’ve lost that local,” she said.
“I want the councillors to fight for their community and really understand their community and then bring to the table all of the issues.”
Ms Duff said she made a document during her campaign with issues that were brought to her by the public.
“I plan to go through every single one of those and provide feedback on whether I can or can’t achieve that.
“The big ticket item is also the Kingaroy and Nanango water. I’ve made a commitment to investigate and do a thorough investigation, find solutions and costing on how to fix the quality of water.”
“I love the community, I want to work with the community and make things great,” Ms Duff said.
Division 1 – Jane Erkens
Jane Erkens won her race to retain her Division 1 seat.
Ms Erkens was first elected in 2022 at the Division 1 by-election brought on when former councillor Roz Frohloff resigned after serving six years.
Ms Erkens, a high-profile businesswoman, was not an unknown in the region at the time of her election having served as the Nanango Chamber of Commerce president, a former real estate agent, and as former secretary of the Nanango Tourism and Development Association.
Ms Erkens called her first 20 months an “apprentice period” and said she was now qualified for a further four years.
“There are a lot more things that I would like to achieve … I feel I definitely have four years there to give,” she said.
Division 2 – Linda Little
Linda Little and her husband of 37 years Phil arrived in Blackbutt 15 years ago and knew instantly they were home.
Now, after living in the community for 12 years will serve the region from her Division 2 council seat.
Along with fostering children, Ms Little is the secretary of the Lions Club in Blackbutt as well as secretary of the Timbertowners sporting and community hub.
“We do a lot of community work around our area here … it keeps me busy and keeps me out and about.”
Ms Little said it was “the time is right” to run.
There are two big issues she wants to tackle: Roads, and the controversial drinking water issue that has plagued the region for years.
“I’ll work my butt off to achieve a good outcome for them,” she said.
Division 3 – Danita Potter
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Danita Potter is the current councillor for Division 3 and ran unopposed for a third term.
“My goal is to ensure our council remains transparent, accountable and cost effective for the South Burnett region,” Ms Potter said.
During her last term Ms Potter the portfolio representative for community development, health, youth and senior citizens, arts and heritage, disaster management, waste and recycling management and library services.
She is the also chair of the South Burnett local disaster management group.
Division 4 – Deb Dennien
Kingaroy resident Deb Dennien credits the outgoing South Burnett Regional Council for working “really hard” and hopes to continue that work over the next four years.
She said issues she wants to focus on include road maintenance, transport links, economic development, housing and efficient delivery of council service.
Like many of the other candidates, the drinking water issue is also important.
“Water is a huge issue in our town, we have relatively old infrastructure and it needs as much attention as we can possibly give it,” she said.
Division 5 – Heath Sander
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Heath Sander has lived in Division 5 his entire life, attending Murgon primary school and Murgon high school while being raised on a farm in Redgate.
In 2018, he and his wife Rowena started a logistics contract with Containers for Change before managing both the Bjelke-Petersen Dam Tourist Park and Boondooma Dam Tourist Park.
“The next four years within this term of council I believe is going to be the hardest four years we have seen,” he said.
“Clear and decisive decision making is what is going to sustain businesses and council to survive and prosper.”
Mr Sander said he is optimistic about the future of the South Burnett.
“I believe that the South Burnett region has a lot more to offer, we are not that far away from major cities and believe we can attract and sustain businesses and people to call our towns and villages home.”
Division 6 – Ros Heit
When Ros Heit lost her council seat in 2020 to Scott Henschen, she did not believe she would run again.
In the 2020 local council election, Ms Heit looked to secure a third term after winning a small majority of the votes.
However, after a recount, Mr Henschen was declared the winner by only four votes.
In the March 2024 election, she made a remarkable comeback with a landslide victory.
“I don’t think there will be any recount,” she said with a laugh.
“I’m very grateful to the people of Division 6 who have put their faith on me, I will do my best to justify that confidence.”
Ms Heit is also pleased about the makeup of the new council.
“It’s made up of people who are committed to community, committed to working hard for the benefit of our region … people with common sense,” she said.
“I’m looking forward to helping the council make some great decisions moving forward and be a more effective council,” she said.
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