Inside the tense Sydney council meeting where a 25-year-old was elected mayor

The first meeting of the new term of Strathfield Council featured a 25-year-old being elected mayor and a parks employee performing the national anthem on a grand piano. But it began in a tense manner when the former mayor, in hospital with an illness, was banned from attending the meeting remotely.

First-time Liberal councillor John-Paul Baladi was elected mayor of the inner-western Sydney council last Tuesday, but not before his predecessor, Labor’s Karen Pensabene, was booted off the call.

Strathfield Liberal mayor John-Paul Baladi and Strathfield Labor councillor Karen Pensabene.

Having spent several months dealing with an ongoing problem with a renal transplant, Pensabene dialled into the meeting from hospital. But the first act of the new council saw her colleagues vote 4-2 to ban her attendance.

Councillors need to vote on requests for colleagues to attend meetings virtually, but the convention generally sees that the requests are approved. This request was supported by Labor’s Rory Nosworthy and independent Matthew Blackmore, with three Liberals and one independent voting against it.

Pensabene said on Monday that she was considering legal advice about the move, which resulted in her being kicked off the call mid-sentence.

“I was totally shocked, and very disappointed, because there was no reason to boot me off,” she said. “I didn’t have the numbers to get mayor, and I don’t know what [the new mayor] was afraid of.” She said that she had to watch the meeting via the council website.

The moment at Strathfield Council where Karen Pensabene was banned from participating.Credit: Strathfield Council

“You kick a person when they’re down, that shows true colours, doesn’t it. He knew I’d been in hospital quite some time … I’d never missed a meeting. I’d been to all the workshops online.

“He’s just a very petty, immature … God, I’ve got to stop there.”

But Baladi said that if a councillor was unable to be “present, involved and active in a community … they should question whether or not they belong on council”.

Pensabene had run in September’s elections but did not campaign, and Baladi said “the more honourable thing she could have done when she was sick was resign and let someone else step up”.

“We’ve had overwhelming support for our decision to exclude a councillor who isn’t available to present and serve,” he said.

Baladi, who works in corporate affairs for an aluminium distributor, was elected alongside independent Ben Cai as deputy. The pair were elected unopposed in a deal, the details of which Baladi and Cai declined to elaborate on.

Baladi said he believes he is the first Gen Z mayor in the state, and was excited by the opportunity to lead the council.

“I walked into the [general manager’s] office at 10am on Friday for a one-hour meeting, I left at 3pm. It was a very long day.”

Cai declined to comment.

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