Preference for mayor: ‘Dummies’ discouraged

By John Van Klaveren
PREFERRENTIAL voting will choose Geelong’s first directly elected mayor, State Government has revealed.
A spokesperson for Local Government minister Jeanette Powell said the system was unlikely to encourage dummy nominations standing only to direct preferences to particular candidates.
“The laws were changed before the 2008 elections to require all candidates to nominate in person. This makes it that much more difficult for so-called dummy candidates to run,” the spokesperson said.
The alternative to preferences would have been a first-past-the-post system in which residents would have voted only for the candidate of their choice.
Geelong will be the second municipality in Victoria to have a directly elected mayor, with Robert Doyle presiding over City of Melbourne.
Geelong residents will elect their mayor to a four-year term during statewide council elections on October 27.
Ms Powell’s spokesperson said the mayoral vote would run in conjuction with ward councillor elections.
“The councillors will be elected as they were last time, as 12 single-member wards with no change to their voting system.
“The difference this time will be that voters get two ballot papers, one for their ward and one for the mayor.”
The spokesperson said State Government was still considering the pay scale for Geelong’s new mayor.
“The minister has said the pay rate for Melbourne’s mayor would be considered in the determination of the Geelong mayor.”
Mr Doyle earns about $150,000 a year as Melbourne’s mayor.
Incumbent Geelong Mayor John Mitchell was unsurprised the Govern-ment had chosed a preferential system.
“We’ll work within the rules they put down. The preferential system is used at state and federal level.”