Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) will hold a public ballot draw for the vacant Councillor position on Monday 21 August.
TRC CEO Brian Pidgeon said Council would undertake the draw at 11.30am in City Hall, 541 Ruthven Street.
“Nominations closed earlier this week and officers have now completed the process of checking the validity of those nominees with requirements under the Local Government Act 2009,” Mr Pidgeon said.
“In total we received 24 valid nominations, however, one of the nominees has withdrawn from the process, leaving us with 23 nominees who will move to the next step.”
Mr Pidgeon will undertake the public ballot order draw with all candidates welcome to attend.
Following the ballot draw, a Special Meeting of Council will be held at 2pm on Tuesday 12 September where the current Councillors will appoint the new Councillor.
Mr Pidgeon said Councillors had asked him to investigate a process for conducting a ballot at the Special Meeting of Council to determine the appointment of the preferred candidate.
“At this meeting, the 23 nominees, in order of Monday’s ballot draw, will be afforded the opportunity to speak for up to two minutes about their suitability for the role,” Mr Pidgeon said.
“The Special Meeting of Council will be open to the public and livestreamed.”
The full list of eligible nominees for the vacant Council position are listed below in alphabetical order.
- Elizabeth Adams
- Eakraj Adhikari
- Douglas Allen
- Douglas Doelle
- Edwina Farquhar
- Norman Garsden
- Petria Grabham
- Penelope (Penny) Houlahan
- David King
- Irene Kobald
- Daniel McCoy
- Scot McPhie
- Joyce (Joy) Mingay
- Brett Mullen
- Ellisa Parker
- Andrew Reeson
- Robert Relvas
- Yousef Roumieh
- Mikaela Smith
- Kirsten Smolenski
- Philip Spencer
- Jane Summers
- Michael Truskinger
Under the Local Government Act there is no requirement to hold an election to fill the vacant office of Councillor as the vacancy is now too close (within 12 months) to the next quadrennial local government election, set for 16 March 2024.
