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NationalNSWCouncil election

This was published 4 years ago

NSW council elections LIVE updates: Clover Moore confident of historic fifth term as Sydney lord mayor; website crash hampers online voting

Michaela Whitbourn
Updated ,first published

Key Posts

Clover Moore celebrates ‘fantastic’ election result despite swing
Labor’s Town Hall candidate congratulates Clover Moore on re-election
Clover Moore confident of historic fifth term as Sydney lord mayor
Candidates in string of bush councils to be elected unopposed
Voters hindered by website outage will not be fined: Electoral Commission
Council threatened to ‘impound’ A-frame signs unless candidates had insurance
‘Irate’: Town Hall closed, voters in Sydney CBD stuck in lengthy queue
When does the vote count start?

The election wrap

By Michaela Whitbourn, Megan Gorrey, Angus Thompson and Matt O'Sullivan

Good evening and thank you for reading our live coverage of the long-awaited 2021 local government elections.

The polls were more than a year overdue after being postponed twice during the COVID-19 pandemic.

That delay meant existing councillors served an extra year in office. This year’s successful crop of candidates will serve a three-year term instead of the customary four-year stretch, and ratepayers will return to the polls in September 2024.

Clover Moore arrives at Surry Hills Library in Sydney on Saturday.Brook Mitchell

Voters have elected councillors in 124 of the 128 councils across the state, and a mayoral vote was also conducted in 35 local government areas.

Clover Moore celebrates ‘fantastic’ election result despite swing

By Megan Gorrey

Gloria Gaynor’s hit anthem “I Will Survive” was blaring earlier tonight at Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore’s election party in Darlinghurst, as she thanked some of her 500-strong army of election day volunteers.

Cr Moore is on track to overcome a swing against her to return as the lord mayor of the City of Sydney. Another term of three years would stretch her reign at Town Hall to two decades. On Saturday night, she told the cheering crowd it had been a challenging campaign.

Clover Moore claims victory as Sydney’s lord mayor for the fifth time.Jessica Hromas

“This is an election that was put off twice, and we were told we couldn’t hand out [how to vote cards] at polling booths.

“I just wondered if people would remember [what to do]. But clearly they did, and it’s a fantastic result.”

Moore thanks voters of Sydney

By Michaela Whitbourn

Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore has thanked the city’s voters as she looks set to extend her 17-year reign by three years.

As we reported earlier tonight, her campaign manager and Sydney independent MP Alex Greenwich told supporters at Cr Moore’s post-election party tonight that she would “confidently [be] re-elected as lord mayor of Sydney, and will be re-elected with a majority of councillors”.

Mr Greenwich is Cr Moore’s successor in the seat of Sydney.

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Voters elect 10 councillors on the City of Sydney, including the mayor. In 2016, Cr Moore was elected along with four others on her ticket – Jess Scully, Philip Thalis, Robert Kok and Jess Miller. Those councillors ran again on Cr Moore’s 10-person ticket.

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Labor’s Town Hall candidate congratulates Clover Moore on re-election

By Michaela Whitbourn

Linda Scott, who was the Labor Party’s candidate for Sydney lord mayor, has congratulated Clover Moore on her re-election to the top job.

It means Cr Moore, who has been mayor of the city for 17 years, has notched up a historic fifth term in office.

Cr Scott said the ALP had “nearly doubled our vote - a huge show of support for our progressive campaign for the future” of the City of Sydney.

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Cr Moore has secured almost 43 per cent of the votes counted so far, while Cr Scott is neck and neck with independent candidate Yvonne Weldon. They both have about 16 per cent of the votes.

Clover Moore confident of historic fifth term as Sydney lord mayor

By Megan Gorrey

A jubilant Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore has addressed a crowd of supporters and volunteers at an election night event at The Park Darlinghurst.

She said the election result “has meant we are going to continue with strong, independent, progressive leadership for the city” and “we should know more on Monday night when the [online] iVotes come in”.

Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore is on track for a historic fifth term.Jessica Hromas

Independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich, who is Cr Moore’s campaign manager, introduced her as the city’s “current and future lord mayor”.

“As we know, there are more votes to count. What we know tonight is Clover will be confidently re-elected as lord mayor of Sydney, and will be re-elected with a majority of councillors.

Clover Moore arrives at post-election party

By Michaela Whitbourn

The incumbent Sydney lord mayor, Clover Moore, has arrived at her post-election party in Darlinghurst.

The initial plan was for her to arrive at the venue at about 8pm, but the NSW Electoral Commission count of votes in the battle for Town Hall got off to a slow start.

Clover Moore arrives at her post-election party in Darlinghurst.Jessica Hromas

Cr Moore has snaffled 43 per cent of the votes so far, while Labor’s Linda Scott is inching towards 17 per cent and independent candidate Yvonne Weldon has almost 16 per cent.

That’s still a significant lead for the incumbent, but indicates a potential swing against Cr Moore. She won the 2016 poll with almost 58 per cent of the vote.

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‘Positive signs Sydney is ready for change,’ lord mayoral candidate says

By Megan Gorrey and Michaela Whitbourn

Yvonne Weldon, who is one of five candidates seeking to unseat City of Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore, said there were signs the city was ready for a change after 17 years of Cr Moore’s reign.

“I’m so proud of our campaign and the support we have gotten throughout. It’s early days in the count, but really positive signs that Sydney is ready for change,” Ms Weldon said.

Yvonne Weldon, the first Aboriginal-Australian candidate for Sydney lord mayor, outside Glebe Town Hall today.Brook Mitchell

“This campaign has shown that having the big financial backers isn’t everything. Our grassroots campaign has grown from nothing, and we’ve made a real mark, regardless of the end result.”

That doesn’t mean Cr Moore is set to lose the keys to Town Hall. Electoral Commission results show she has snared more than 42 per cent of the 12,443 votes counted so far, while Weldon has won 16 per cent and Labor’s Linda Scott has close to 17 per cent.

But the results suggest there may be a swing afoot against the popular incumbent. In 2016, Cr Moore romped to victory with almost 58 per cent of the votes.

Labor, Greens neck and neck in battle for Inner West Council

By Angus Thompson

The Greens and Labor are running neck and neck in every ward in the Inner West Council, raising questions about whether the Greens’ policy to de-merge the council has been unpalatable to some voters.

Former Inner West Council mayor Darcy Byrne.Dominic Lorrimer

Former mayor Darcy Byrne looks set to retain his place in Balmain ward, with the Greens’ newcomer Kobi Shetty so far ahead in the polls.

Meanwhile, former Ku-ring-gai mayor Jennifer Anderson, who led the council’s rebellion against housing targets last year, is in danger of losing her spot on council.

While early results show she is only a shade behind the second spot in the two-person Roseville ward, the outlook doesn’t put her in a comfortable position to secure another term.

Her successor, mayor Cendric Spencer, is second to Kim Wheatley in Wahroonga ward, meaning he is placed to resume his spot on council. However, the results so far may indicate locals are fatigued by the infighting that has occurred in chambers.

The Sydney councils in play tonight

By Matt O'Sullivan, Angus Thompson, Megan Gorrey and Andrew Taylor

A number of battleground council areas in Sydney emerged in recent weeks as campaigns were fought on track records, visions for reshaping local government areas, and hot-button issues ranging from the scale of development to bike paths and ways to revive night-time entertainment and CBDs.

The City of Sydney is arguably the biggest prize in NSW’s local council elections and this year it’s an all-women contest as six candidates vie to become the Sydney lord mayor, including the first Aboriginal candidate Yvonne Weldon, Labor’s Linda Scott and the Liberals’ Shauna Jarrett.

But consider also Parramatta, Ku-ring-gai, Inner West, Canterbury-Bankstown, Woollahra and Waverley and Sutherland.

In Parramatta, the Liberal Party’s decision not to endorse candidates is set to have a significant bearing on the election outcome for Sydney’s second city. Apart from infuriating sitting Liberal councillors, it has given Labor its best chance in years to gain control of Parramatta City Council.

Former Parramatta Liberal mayor Bob Dwyer is the only one of six incumbent Liberal councillors recontesting – this time as an independent after the Liberal state executive decided against endorsing candidates.

Read the full story on the battleground councils here.

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Former Liverpool mayor on track for comeback

By Angus Thompson

The Liberals’ Ned Mannoun appears set to return as mayor of the City Liverpool, based on early counts.

Electoral Commission results so far show the man who sat out the last term of local politics is on track to resume his previous place as head of the south-west Sydney council, with Labor’s Nathan Hagarty trailing 12 percentage points behind.

Former Liverpool mayor Ned Mannoun and his wife, Tina Ayyad.Facebook

Meanwhile, in North Sydney, mayor Jilly Gibson is comfortably positioned to retain her spot in Cammeraygal ward, with results not yet flowing through for the five available spots in St Leonards ward.

Northern Beaches mayor Michael Regan’s Your Northern Beaches party is dominating in his ward of Frenchs Forest as well as Curl Curl, but early counts show the Liberals ahead in Narrabeen and Pittwater.

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