iVote saga: Kempsey, Singleton and Shellharbour Councils unite to push back against by-elections

The three councils embroiled in the iVote saga have sent a letter to the Minister for Local Government begging her to dismiss the Supreme Court ruling for by-elections to be held.

There has been a major development in the iVote saga which has embroiled three local government areas for the last six months.

The outcome in the councils of Kempsey, Singleton and Shellharbour (Ward A) was cast into doubt after iVote, the system tasked with managing online voting, melted down during the December 4 local government elections.

The NSW Electoral Commission took the matter, which was essentially against themselves, to the Supreme Court, where in March, Justice Robert Beech-Jones ruled the results in the three LGAs would be voided.

However, NewsLocal can reveal 16 of 19 councillors, as well as the two non-elected candidates in Shellharbour Ward A, wrote to the Minister for Local Government Wendy Tuckerman urging her to postpone the by-elections until the next local government elections in September, 2024.

The date for the by-elections are yet to be determined, but if Mrs Tuckerman was to reject the request, they would need to be held by August 4.

The letter, which was sent on Wednesday, May 11, argued the respective communities have suffered enough and digging into the already short two years and nine month term (which was a result of the LGA elections being delayed a year due to Covid) wasn’t warranted.

The three councils are waiting for a response from NSW Minister for Local Government Wendy Tuckerman.

“Our communities have become collateral damage in a broken election system,” the letter said.

“The outcome of an election process not-fit-for purpose resulted in a mass failure of the iVote, which was foreseen prior to the election on 4 December 2021.

“Councillors are elected for a four-year term which aligns with the statutory provisions of integrated planning and reporting framework.

“The Covid pandemic has already reduced that term to two years and nine months. Another election for Kempsey, Singleton and Shellharbour will further reduce the term to two years and two months (in fact those communities can look forward to three local government elections in 30 months).

“Our communities will not have a consistent, well-informed and fully inducted governing body to oversee the council business and to be a nexus between the people and council.”

Shellharbour Mayor Chris Homer explained that he met with Mrs Tuckerman last Thursday along with his Kempsey counterpart Leo Hauville.

“I am keeping very positive about it all,” he said.

“The good thing is it is being considered. We had a meeting with the Minister and explained how none of the three councils want to go back to the polls six months after the last one.

“We want to move forward and work for the community.”

Cr Homer said he didn’t know when Mrs Tuckerman would respond to the letter, however, he suggested it was being “highly considered”.

Shellharbour councillors Kellie Marsh and Maree Edwards were elected after finishing one and two in Ward A.

Shellharbour Ward A Independent councillor Kellie Marsh.

Shellharbour Ward A Labor councillor Maree Edwards.

Independent Shane Bitschkat and Labor’s Michael Moon were third and fourth respectively, but the two men have opted to join the elected councillors in asking for the by-elections to be scrapped.

“For Shane and Michael to be in the same boat and for us to be a united front is a wonderful thing,” Cr Marsh, the city’s deputy mayor, said.

“We don’t want to put the community through another election. They’re suffering voter fatigue. They had the local government election, the federal one is this Saturday and then they will have the state election in March.”

Cr Edwards felt the three councils’ request was now being given due consideration and he was quietly confident of the decision falling in their favour.

“It’s good we have been able to have direct contact with the Minister and we’re being collectively heard when before maybe we weren’t,” she said.

“From my point of view, this is a bipartisan push, for the councils and for the voters who will have voter fatigue after this federal election. So I feel we are close to getting a good outcome.”

Mr Hauville was contacted, however, he said he was refraining from commenting until he heard back from Minister Tuckerman.

Singleton Mayor Sue Moore was also contacted for comment.