Whitsunday Mayor Julie Hall leads her first council meeting

In her first meeting leading the council, the newly-elected Whitsunday mayor started off with a general apology for any ‘inadvertent’ offence she may have caused during the controversial election campaign. Catch our exclusive interview with the mayor for more.

Newly-elected Whitsunday Mayor Julie Hall has begun her tenure with a public apology and calls for a “clean slate” following her upset victory in the controversial mayoral campaign.

“I feel it is appropriate to start today with a clean slate and offer a public apology to any councillors, directors or staff who I may have inadvertently offended during my election campaign,” she said.

“I am sincerely sorry and I hope you can graciously accept my apology so we can now put the election behind us and focus on working for the community we serve.”

Ms Hall made the remarks in the council’s September 14 meeting, her first since being sworn in as mayor in late August.

Whitsunday Mayor Julie Hall after her first council meeting on September 14, 2022. Picture: Duncan Evans

The election campaign exposed splits and animosities among councillors, with Councillor Mike Brunker accusing his competitors, including Ms Hall, of improperly teaming up to suppress his candidacy by handing out each other’s how-to-vote cards at different parts of the electorate at pre-poll booths and on election day.

“You talk about transparency and honesty and you are sitting there all working together, handing out people’s preferences, without telling the public that is what you are doing, it is not very honest and it is not very integral, is it?” Mr Brunker said after the election.

He said he would not complain to the ECQ because it was a “paper tiger”.

Mr Brunker led on first preference votes but lost out to Ms Hall after preferences were distributed.

Speaking after the meeting, Ms Hall said her apology was “general” and not directed to anyone in particular.

She also said she did not regret any particular statement she made during the campaign.

“When you campaign, you come from a place of where you are at the time,” she said.

“When you come into council some things are a little bit different to what you understood it on the outside, so nothing specific, it was just more of a general apology.”

Whitsunday Regional Council CEO Rodney Ferguson answers queries during the September 14 council meeting. Whitsunday Mayor Julie Hall sits to his right. Picture: Duncan Evans

She added she was generally satisfied with the overall tenor of the contest.

“I did not find any fault with it (the election),” she said.

“There were definitely issues that arose, but it is a democratic process and we wanted a democratic result, so I am pretty happy with it.”

Ms Hall led the meeting effectively, which did not yield up any contentious debates, though on occasion she fumbled the technical processes through which councillors conduct business.

“I am a bit nervous, sorry,” she said early on in the meeting.

Whitsunday CEO Rodney Ferguson sat beside her throughout the meeting, whispering directions in her ear.

In the preceding two weeks, Ms Hall has travelled to Brisbane, Moranbah and across the Whitsunday local government area, meeting with a range of dignitaries and business leaders, including Gilmour Space Technologies and the Bowen Gumlu Growers Association.

Originally published as Whitsunday Mayor Julie Hall leads her first council meeting