Alice Springs Town Council Mayor Matt Paterson drops 2025 re-election bid to put ‘family first’

Alice Springs Mayor Matt Paterson will not seek re-election in August. Find out his reason why.

Alice Springs Mayor Matt Paterson will not seek re-election in August. Picture: Alice Springs Town Council

Alice Springs Mayor Matt Paterson will not seek re-election in August, citing a lack of time with his family as the major reason behind his decision.

“It has been one of the greatest honours of my life,” Mr Paterson told the NT News.

“But I’ve got two young kids … for me, it’s about putting my family first and cherishing the memories with them.

“Thank you, Alice Springs, for giving me the opportunity – and I’m sorry I’m not going to be there for another four years.”

Mr Paterson said he planned to serve out the rest of his term, and would continue to support ongoing and upcoming council projects in the interim.

“We’ve got some pretty big projects on the way,” he said.

Mr Paterson said there were some “exciting” projects on the way for the council. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“Obviously with the CBD we’ve got the $20 million from the (Federal government), so that’s nearly ready to go out to tender for construction.

“We’re also working with the NT government and Tourism Central Australia about the visitor information centre and a new library, so there’s some things underway which are pretty exciting.

“I think we’ve left this council in good shape for the next council to hit the ground running.”

Mr Paterson acknowledged he’d accomplished many things during his time in council.

“One of the big things is Newman Park; I took that to council in 2017 when I was a councillor and got rejected by the community; but here we are now having it under construction after some advocacy and getting a deal with the Feds,” he said.

Mr Paterson has not endorsed a mayoral candidate. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“The liveability and the amenity that we’ve been able to invest in Alice Springs over the journey’s been quite good and pretty successful.

“I can say all these things as mayor, but ultimately I’ve had a pretty good council, which has made my life easy and very pragmatic … there’s been no bickering over the four years, I owe it to the council just as much as I owe it to the community.”

While taking a “hands off” approach in endorsing a mayoral candidate, Mr Paterson acknowledged there were “some good councillors … that I’m sure will have a crack and do a fine job”.

“But there’s also many people in the community that, if they’re thinking about it, should nominate whether it’s for mayor or council because it’s a very rewarding job,” he said.

“It comes with challenges, but the good days far, far outweigh the bad days.”

Mr Paterson was elected as mayor in 2021 at age 30, making him the youngest mayor in Alice Springs’ history.

Originally published as Alice Springs Town Council Mayor Matt Paterson drops 2025 re-election bid to put ‘family first’