Council elections 2020: Knox councillor Adam Gill won’t run again in October
With almost two decades under his belt, this longstanding Knox councillor has decided to call it quits.
Outer East
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After more than 17 years, one of Knox’s longest serving councillors is calling time on late-night meetings, working groups and dealing with voters’ complaints.
Former mayor and Dinsdale Ward representative Adam Gill has announced he won’t contest the next council election, which is set for Saturday, October 24.
Cr Gill said he had decided to move on from elected office and give other people a chance to “have a go”.
With almost two decades under his belt, Cr Gill also dabbled in state politics, almost running against former Bayswater Liberal MP Heidi Victoria in 2014.
Cr Gill had planned to make a play for the seat but later stepped down for “personal reasons”, with Maroondah councillor Tony Dib stepping in as the Labor candidate.
The father-of-four made a second attempt to run again for the seat of Bayswater in 2018 but withdrew his nomination shortly before going up for Labor preselection against fellow Knox councillor Peter Lockwood.
A preselected Cr Lockwood later pulled out of the race, with former councillor Jackson Taylor taking the Labor baton and knocking Ms Victoria from her throne.
But Cr Gill said it had been a great honour to serve the Knox community.
“I’ve been on five councils and seen a lot of changes,” he said.
“The great thing after elections is we’ll have old and new people, and it refreshes the council.”
Cr Gill said he made the decision during the Christmas holidays and wanted to spend more time with his children aged between six and 13.
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“Some councillors wait until the last minute and announce successors but I want others to get a chance to consider if they want to run,” he said.
“I’m proud of what I’ve achieved, which includes the Bayswater Library, the early years hub, preschool, and the parkland upgrades.”
He said there were some great people in the community and now they have an opportunity to run for office.