Council election 2020: New Surfers Paradise councillor Darren Taylor wins seat and gets engaged

Winning the tighest council race in 25 years wasn’t the only big news for incoming councillor Darren Taylor who is celebrating his best 24 hours ever.

FOR incoming councillor Darren Taylor, it was a case of victory sealed with a kiss.

More than two weeks after the March 28 election, Mr Taylor was named over the weekend as the winner of Division 10, the new council seat which takes in Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.

He defeated former area councillor Eddy Sarroff by the thinnest margin seen in council since 1995 - just 149 votes.

A delighted Darren Taylor with his new fiancee Samantha Reynolds. Picture Glenn Hampson

Mr Sarroff, who previously represented Division 10 from 1995 to 2012 yesterday conceded defeat in a gracious phone call to Mr Taylor and wished him well.

Mr Taylor thanked Mr Sarroff for his message and said he was ready to roll up his sleeves and work.

“It was a hard-fought battle and it has been a tense few weeks,” Mr Taylor said.

“It was always going to be tough but I am fortunate that I did get there in the end.

“I am looking forward to getting my hands dirty. There is a big job ahead of us.”

Darren Taylor defeated Eddy Sarroff by 149 votes. Picture Glenn Hampson

But if winning a council seat wasn’t enough, Mr Taylor also celebrated getting engaged to his own campaign manager and partner of more than four years, Samantha Reynolds.

“It was an amazing 24 hours and very special because we got engaged on Friday night and got the results of the council count late on Saturday,” he said.

Ms Reynolds said the engagement came as a “complete surprise”.

“We had never even talked about it beforehand so it was an absolute surprise to me,” she said.

“Friday was my birthday and because we couldn’t do anything we decided to have a picnic on the back deck.

“He popped the question there and it was a huge surprise.”

Victory was sealed with a kiss. Picture Glenn Hampson

When the new council is sworn in later this month, Mr Taylor will replace his own father, Councillor Paul Taylor who announced his retirement earlier this year and did not contest the election.

He will be one of four new councillors, joining Mark Hammel, Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden and Brooke Patterson.

Those incoming councillors last week took part in an induction day where they met senior directors and learned the basics of council meetings before swearing in takes place.

Division 10 was the last undecided election for the Coast following the March 28 election.

Among the issues Cr Taylor said he was keen to work on was the council’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, providing relief to struggling restaurants and businesses which have been hit by the economic slowdown and a range of local issues.

The new council is expected to be sworn in this month once the Electoral Commission of Queensland declares the outstanding seats.