Toowoomba, southwest Qld council elections: Mayor Geoff McDonald holds big lead amid tight mayoral races
There will be at least three new mayors across the Darling Downs, as multiple incumbents appear to have been voted out by their constituents across the region. Follow the live results here.
Geoff McDonald will return as mayor of Toowoomba, but many of his colleagues in other council areas are in real danger of losing their spots.
With vote counting under way across the Darling Downs, both Mr McDonald and Andrew Smith in the Western Downs look set for comfortable wins in their respective races.
But there are upsets on the cards in regions like the Southern Downs and Maranoa regions.
Here is a full wrap on the mayoral races across southern Queensland, along with the Toowoomba councillor race:
FOLLOW OUR LIVE BLOG AND RESULTS BELOW. USE THE TABS TO SCROLL ACROSS TO YOUR REGION:
McDonald reveals 100-day plan
Mayor Geoff McDonald has revealed his actions for the first 100 days if he’s re-elected, after establishing a mammoth lead over his only challenger in the Toowoomba mayoral election race.
Mr McDonald, who took over the role from the retiring Paul Antonio last year, looks set to win his first mayoral contest.
With more than 100,000 votes counted, he holds an 82-18 lead over Oakey man Douglas Doelle, who nominated at the last minute and spent little on advertising.
While the race has not been called by the ECQ, Mr McDonald said he was confident he would return as mayor.
“I acknowledge the other mayoral candidate for putting himself forward, it takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there,” he said.
“I’m very buoyed by the current count and give full credit to my friends and family who supported me during pre-polling.”
Mr McDonald said he planned to hit the ground running if elected, laying out his agenda for the first three months leading up to a difficult budget in June.
“The first 100 days are all about making sure we can bring everyone up to speed so we can deliver a budget,” he said.
“As we’ll be bringing the team together, we need to make sure they know they’ve been given this privilege and responsibility (to be on council).
“They’re the crucial things for us – get this budget sorted, bringing the team together and looking at a different model of how we can deliver council for the region.”
Mr McDonald, who will fly out to Canberra to meet with the Infrastructure Minister Catherine King as part of a Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise delegation on Tuesday, also acknowledged the “disconnect” felt by residents in smaller townships across the region.
“One of the things that crops up is the feeling of disconnect between regional towns and Toowoomba, and I have some ideas now that I want to bring around the table,” he said.
“I want to make sure we’re doing everything we can.”
Mr McDonald becomes just the third person to win a Toowoomba mayoral election since amalgamation in 2008.
Toowoomba council: Gardner poised for spot as incumbents poll strongly
Prominent Queensland businessman Gary Gardner looks poised to join the Toowoomba Regional Council, but full results might not be known for days amid slow counting.
Mr Gardner, who is the executive chairman of FKG Group, is polling fourth-highest out of 27 candidates in a race that has again been dominated by incumbents.
The early numbers come from 4600 pre-poll ballots in Toowoomba, worth just over three per cent of the region’s total voter roll (126,000).
Deputy mayor Rebecca Vonhoff has maintained her place as the region’s most popular councillor, polling at 8.2 per cent.
She is followed by fellow councillors Melissa Taylor (6.6 per cent) and James O’Shea (6.35 per cent), with Mr Gardner (6.23 per cent) and political stalwart Kerry Shine (6.08 per cent) rounding out the top five.
Councillors Bill Cahill, Carol Taylor, Tim McMahon and Edwina Farquhar all look set to be returned as well, based on early numbers.
The other likely new candidate is real estate agent Trevor Manteufel, who is in 10th spot and holds a significant lead over Mark Orford and Eakraj Adhikari.
Mr Manteufel said he was hoping the trend continued.
“The numbers are looking good so far,” he said.
“A lot of people thought I was honest, I didn’t bull---- with answers and people liked the common-sense attitude.”
Early numbers don’t bode well for “anti-woke” candidate Nathan Essex, who is polling at just 2.68 per cent despite a widespread advertising campaign.
The slow vote-counting has not just been felt in Toowoomba, with candidates across Queensland complaining about delays in results from the ECQ.
Taylor ahead of Golder in Maranoa
Maranoa councillor Wendy Taylor has promised to prioritise accountability and transparency if she is elected as the region’s next mayor.
Ms Taylor (48 per cent) holds a commanding lead over incumbent Tyson Golder, who has just 28 per cent of first preferences.
The result would see Mr Golder unseated after two terms, with his leadership marred by issues surrounding his Unity Maranoa ticket of councillors that formed an impregnable voting block in the chamber.
Ms Taylor, who has been a vocal critic of the mayor, said residents were unhappy with the direction of the council and region.
“Their concerns were when the community put the party in, they thought it would be good, but there were five voices in that room that turned into one,” she said.
“Whatever the mayor wanted, they put their hands up — I feel like the community realised they picked the wrong thing, so they’ve voted against that.
“The only reason I ran for mayor was because I didn’t want to be a councillor under this and I had nothing to lose.”
Ms Taylor said the purchase of a disused grain shed in Roma by the council without any business case attached was a good example of the problems with the MRC.
“When you can come to the table with a plan to buy a grain shed for $190,000 from Grain Corp, and when we asked what it was for, we were told ‘it doesn’t matter what, we’re buying it’, and it’s still sitting there,” she said.
“Council needs to be run as a business, and it’s not my money, it’s the community’s money — (that example) is not good business.”
Mr Golder was contacted for comments.
Hamilton in box seat in Southern Downs
Southern Downs mayoral challenger Melissa Hamilton says residents expressed a need for change in council with their vote, as she looks set to overthrow Vic Pennisi.
With 83 per cent of the vote counted, the commercial lawyer and water rights advocate is polling at 46 per cent, ahead of Mr Pennisi on just 37 per cent.
Ms Hamilton was actually behind last night before results from the Warwick pre-polling booth swung the election back in her favour.
“I have been overwhelmed by support throughout the campaign and now, as results are flowing in, that support is translating into votes,” she said. “If the voting trends continue then I am ready to lead a new council that works together to get things done for all of our wonderful communities.”
Ms Hamilton said the results showed residents didn’t feel they were being listened to by the Southern Downs Regional Council or the mayor.
“There are a lot of different issues (in this election), but when you came down to the bottom, it was a feeling there were missed opportunities and the basics were not done well,” she said on Saturday.
“The pressure of rates is flowing through to the electorate, and it was felt the council wasn’t responding to that.
“I’d just like to praise the efforts of all my volunteers, it’s been an amazing effort.”
A breakdown of the voting centres has shown Ms Hamilton polling above 50 per cent in Warwick booths both early and on voting day, double that of the mayor.
In contrast, Mr Pennisi has dominated in early and voting day counts in and around Stanthorpe, highlighting the divisions within the Southern Downs region.
Ms Hamilton said unity was a big part of her message to voters.
“It’s not just a north and south thing — if you look at the voting from Wallangarra (near the Queensland border), there is a feeling of being neglected by council,” she said.
Mr Pennisi was contacted for comment.
Smith, Milligan dominate in mayoral races
Western Downs deputy mayor Andrew Smith looks set to be named the new mayor of the region, enjoying a massive 76-24 lead over opponent Glenn Strandquist.
Mr Smith will take over from predecessor Paul McVeigh, who announced his retirement at the end of the previous council term.
In the Lockyer Valley, Tanya Milligan seems to have fought off spirited challenges from Kyle Burnett and Maree Rosier to be elected mayor for a third term.
Ms Milligan has nearly 45 per cent of first preferences, well ahead of Mr Burnett on 29 per cent and Ms Rosier on 26 per cent.
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Originally published as Toowoomba, southwest Qld council elections: Mayor Geoff McDonald holds big lead amid tight mayoral races
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