Undecided voters could spring a surprise this Ryde Council election

A LIBERAL powerbroker is unsure if the party will regain a majority on Ryde Council as the first votes are counted from the election tonight.

The Ryde Liberal is Jordan Lane, Brigid Meney, Chris Moujalli, Sarkis Yedelian, Amy Lee and Trenton Brown.

A LIBERAL powerbroker is unsure if the party will regain a majority on Ryde Council as the first votes are counted from the election tonight.

Liberal candidate Sarkis Yedelian hopes to be re-elected tonight but met some voters today who were unsure of the council’s responsibilities.

He said people responded well to the Liberal message, but he had difficulty with others’ requests.

“They want stability, they want the council united and not to be fighting each other,” Mr Yedelian said.

“But a lot of the things they want are out of our control. They want solutions for traffic, which we can’t do, and over-development, which we can’t control.”

People handing out how-to-vote cards at Ryde bowling club.

“A lot of those issues are state government ones.”

The state government has responsibility for major roads like Victoria Rd, and major building projects.

Mr Yedelian said he expected a lot of informal votes, as many people were unhappy at being required to vote.

The Liberals had a majority six councillors after the 2015 by-election which saw Jane Stott join Craig Chung, Artin Etmekdjian, Roy Maggio, Bill Pickering and Sarkis Yedelian.

Only Mr Yedelian finished the term as a Liberal Ryde councillor. The others left the council or were not preselected and quit the party.

Mr Yedelian was coy about his team’s chances tonight.

“We are hoping our numbers will be good but I don’t know if we’ll have a majority,” he said.

“It will come down to preferences.”

Zac Miles (third from left) is hoping to be elected mayor of Hunters Hill.

Voters do not elect the mayor of Ryde. Councillors are expected to do so on September 26.

State Opposition leader Luke Foley attended Denistone East Public School to show support for the Labor team.

West Ward candidate Jerome Laxale, hoping to be re-elected to council, was upbeat about voters’ response.

“Eastwood Oval and the carpark proposed by Victor Dominello was the number one issue in West Ward,” he said.

“People responded positively to the Labor plan to protect the oval and I hope they voted accordingly.”

Independent West Ward candidate Kit Chan was also there and found voters pleased he was a newcomer to local government.

State Opposition leader Luke Foley shows his support for Labor candidates Jerome Laxale and Peter Kim.

“People were saying it was good I haven’t been in there before (Ryde Council), that I’m not aligned with political parties and they like how I was in the paper demonstrating what I want to improve,” he said.

Meanwhile at Hunters Hill, residents have been voting for their preferred mayor.

Two incumbent councillors hope to gain the top job: independent Mark Bennett and Liberal Zac Miles.

Ross Williams, mayor from 1989 to 1993, is the third contender aiming for the top job.

Ryde and Hunters Hill councillors will serve a three year term to align with those councils which were unaffected by the state government’s mergers.