Clarence Valley Council has confirmed what councillors and locals suspected: the wrong man was made mayor.
In a statement issued Friday, Council admitted an error occurred during the election of the mayor at the September ordinary meeting, and revealed it has gone to the state’s Office of Local Government seeking urgent advice on how to fix it.
Four councillors were nominated for the top job: Mayor Ray Smith, Cr Peter Johnstone, Cr Greg Clancy and Cr Cristie Yager. The vote was conducted by open show of hands, with the field cut down round by round.
Cr Yager was eliminated in the first round, and Cr Clancy went in the second. That left Cr Smith and Cr Johnstone locked together on four votes each, with Cr Lynne Cairns abstaining. With neither candidate able to get over the line, General Manager Laura Black, acting as returning officer, announced the tie would be broken by drawing a name from a hat.
Before the draw took place, Cr Clancy stood up to question exactly what the draw would decide.
“Just to clarify for those who don’t understand, drawing from the hat in this case is the person that will become the mayor, rather than being eliminated,” Cr Clancy said.
Ms Black disagreed.
“No, it’s the elimination,” Ms Black said.
“The name drawn from the hat is the elimination, Councillor Smith. Your name was drawn from the hat and therefore you are eliminated, which makes Councillor Johnstone the mayor of Clarence Valley Council.”
Cr Smith’s name was pulled, and he was declared out of the race, clearing the way for Cr Johnstone to be sworn in as mayor for the 2026 to 2028 term.
Council’s statement confirms Ms Black had it backwards.
“Prior to the draw taking place, the General Manager, Laura Black, mistakenly advised those present that the councillor whose name was drawn would be eliminated,” the statement said.
Under the Local Government Regulation, where a tied mayoral vote occurs, the result must be settled by the drawing of lots, with the councillor whose name is drawn declared elected as mayor, not eliminated. That means the name pulled from the hat, Cr Smith’s, should have made him mayor, not cost him the job.
On the day, Cr Smith took the loss on the chin, telling fellow councillors he had learned from a rocky first term.
“In the past two years, I’ve made mistakes, and I acknowledge those mistakes,” Cr Smith said.
“My motivation is not personal ambition, it’s a genuine desire to represent the community.”
Cr Johnstone, who held the mayoralty for 11 months during a COVID-shortened term, had made his pitch to colleagues before the vote by painting a grim picture of the valley’s fortunes.
“I see a valley in slow decline. More and more shops are empty,” Cr Johnstone said.
“Vote for me. I will not let you down.”
After being declared the winner, Cr Johnstone struck a more measured tone.
“This isn’t quite the way I wanted it at all, and I just like to thank Ray for his leadership over the last few years,” Mayor Johnstone said.
Cr Smith congratulated his rival from the floor, telling councillors he would give Cr Johnstone his full support, unaware at the time that the process which unseated him had been run incorrectly.
Council says it will not act further until it hears back from the state regulator.
“Council has sought urgent confirmation from the Office of Local Government regarding the appropriate remedial action to address the error,” the statement said.
“Once advice has been received, Council will provide further public information regarding the outcome and required next steps.”
A rescission motion calling for an extraordinary meeting to reconduct the mayoral vote is understood to be in the works, though Council has not yet set a date.
Council maintained the matter would be handled openly.
“Council acknowledges the importance of maintaining public confidence in its decision-making processes and is committed to ensuring the matter is resolved transparently and in accordance with the legislative requirements,” the statement said.
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