Local Government Elections
Local Government elections are held every four years. The next election will be held in November 2018.
Council is not required to hold supplementary elections for vacancies that may occur after 1 January of a periodic election year.
Local Government elections provide an opportunity to elect representatives who aspire, through the decisions they will be empowered to make on behalf of the community, to contribute to effective Local Government.
Vote! 2018 Council Elections
All voting in Local Government elections is by postal voting. Electors will receive their ballot packs between 22 and 26 October 2018.
Every person on the voters roll will receive by post a pack containing the following:
- a ballot paper for each contested election for which you are eligible to vote
- a profile for each of the candidates
- an envelope, with a declaration flap attached, into which you will place your ballot paper/s
- a reply paid envelope to contain the completed ballot material
- a postal voting guide
Voting closes at 5pm on Friday 9 November 2018
Voters can either post their votes in the Reply Paid envelope or you can hand deliver your voting envelope by placing it in the ballot box at the City of Mitcham Civic Centre, 131 Belair Road, Torrens Park.
If you post your ballot papers, make sure you place it in the mail before 5pm Wednesday 7 November so that they arrive before 9 November 2018.
Make Sure your Vote Counts
When you complete your ballot papers make sure that:
- you complete and sign the declaration on the outside flap
- the declaration flap is NOT detached from the envelope
- you do not put anyone else’s ballot papers in your ballot envelope. You may think you are saving money, but none of the votes will count
When you number your ballot paper, make sure that you put enough consecutive numbers in the squares to at least equal the number of vacancies to be filled.
For example, when marking your ballot papers, if there are two positions to be filled in a ward and there are six candidates, you must at least place a ‘1’ and a ‘2’ next to your preferred candidates. Alternatively you can mark your ballot paper from ‘1’ to ‘6’, placing a number next to each candidate in order of preference.
Your Candidates
Nominations listed in Ballot order
Find Your Candidate
Nominations for the 2018 City of Mitcham Local Government Elections closed 18 September at 12noon, with the following nominations being received (in ballot order);
Mayor
Matthew Quast
Heather Holmes-Ross
Glenn Spear
Babbage Ward
Michael Taliangis
Dave Munro
Mohsen Ismail
Richard Warren
Sesh Vidyam
Yvonne Todd
Jody Moate
Boorman Ward
Andrew Tilley
Adam Kennedy
Adriana Christopoulos
Michael Saies
Gwyneth Jolley
Craigburn Ward
Karen Hockley
Darren Kruse
Davin Smith
Lindy Taeuber
Dianna Smith-McCue
Jane Silbereisen
Craig Wilkins
Gault Ward
Janet Scott
Ian Budge
Steven Fisher
Jasmine Berry
Mark Griffin
Overton Ward
John Sanderson
Nicholas Economos
Katarina Steele
The Park Ward
Tom Morrison
Corin McCarthy
Jacob Hodgman
Jane Bange
Catherine Hutchesson
Mark Ward
Mark Gamtcheff
Meet the Candidate Sessions
The following sessions have been arranged for Nominees to meet with the Community - all sessions commence at 7pm and will conclude by 8.30pm:
The Park Ward - Monday 24 September 2018 in the Blackwood Community Centre - 4 Young Street, Blackwood
Craigburn Ward - Thursday 27 September in the Blackwood Community Centre - 4 Young Street, Blackwood
Overton Ward - Tuesday 2 October 2018 in the Cumberland Park Community Centre - 390 Goodwood Road, Cumberland Park
Gault Ward - Thursday 4 October 2018 in the Hawthorn Community Centre - 5 Frimley Grove, Hawthorn
Boorman Ward - Monday 8 October 2018 in the Civic Centre Council Chambers - 131 Belair Road Torrens Park
Babbage Ward - Wednesday 10 October 2018 in the Tower Arts Centre - 720 Goodwood Road, Pasadena
Mayor - Monday 15 October 2018 in the Cumberland Park Community Centre - 390 Goodwood Road Cumberland Park
To pre-register questions posed to Candidates at these sessions, please email elections2018@MitchamCouncil.sa.gov.au identifying the ward the question relates to.
Questions must be received 48 hours before the session to be included on the Agenda for the evening.
Candidates will be supplied with the questions the day before the session via email.
If you are a candidate and you are unable to attend, you may supply a statement that can be read out by the facilitator. Please provide this statement via the email address above 48 hours prior to the evening, limiting your statement to a three minute introduction.
A table will also be provided for any material/information the absent candidate may wish to provide which will remain the candidate's (or their proxy's) responsibility for dissemination and removal at the close of the evening.
Other Resources
Candidates may wish to familiarise themselves with the following documents with links provided below:
City of Mitcham Annual Business Plan and Budget
City of Mitcham Annual Reports
City of Mitcham Long Term Financial Plans
City of Mitcham Polices and Procedures
Local Government Association of South Australia
Electoral Commission of South Australia
Election Signs and Caretaker Policies
Candidates' Questions
All questions asked by candidates and prospective candidates, together with the answers provided by the Administration, are available here.
The form is no longer active.
Local Government Elections Frequently Asked Questions
Campaign Information
Question | Answer |
| Can Election Corflutes include the email addresses of printer and authorising person? | No. An 'address' must either be a postal address or residential address not an email address. |
| Can the City of Mitcham provide Ward Maps to assist Candidates? | The City of Mitcham only produces the following maps with the link provided here: Ward Maps City of Mitcham |
| When are my corflute signs allowed to go up and when are they required to come down? | Erection of council signs can be undertaken at or after polling day 12AM 12 October 2018. Please be aware to clause 6.11 of the City of Mitcham Election Signs Policy, where it states that the erection of signs can not occur between the hours of 7am to 10am or 3pm to 7pm Monday to Friday on a peak flow traffic lane. Signs are required to be removed within 48 hours of the close of voting otherwise they are considered illegal. This means all signs need to be removed by 5pm 11 November 2018. |
| Can you please provide the Oath of Office that the newly elected council will make. | I, [name], having been elected or appointed to the office of a member of the City of Mitcham, undertake to faithfully and impartially fulfil the duties of office in the public interest, to the best of my judgement and abilities and in accordance with the Local Government Act 1999. |
| When can I start campaigning by handing out leaflets, etc? | Candidates can commence campaigning once their nomination has been accepted. Please refer to further questions below regarding Election signs and the City of Mitcham's Election Signs Policy. |
| When can election signs be erected? | Election signs can be erected from 12 October 2018 (4 weeks before the polling date which is the 9 November) Local Government Act 1999 (SA) s 226(3). |
| What are the rules with regards to election signs? | Election signs which are erected on property under the care or control of Council, SA Power Networks or DPTI will be monitored. Please refer to the following policy: City of Mitcham Election Signs Policy and The following By-laws: For signs to be erected on property other than Council, SA Power Networks or DPTI, approval must be obtained by the property owner. |
| I have a complaint about the content of a candidate’s election material | Please refer your complaint to the electoral commission at: Telephone: 1300 655 232 Email: ecsa.complaints@sa.gov.au |
Community Information
Question | Answer |
| What is the number of households in each ward? | Information about the number of households and electors together with information can be obtained from the Community Profile site by clicking on this link Community Profile |
| What are the rateable property numbers for each ward? | Boorman 4448, Gault 4316, Overton 5039, Babbage 4915, Craigburn 6199, The Park 3935 |
| What is the breakdown between residential and commercial rateable properties per ward? | Boorman Residential: 4217, Commercial 121, *Non Residential/other 110 Gault Residential: 4152, Commercial 109, *Non Residential/other 55 Overton Residential: 4505, Commercial 397, *Non Residential/other 137 Babbage Residential:4487, Commercial 208, *Non Residential/other 220 Craigburn Residential: 5749, Commercial 182, *Non Residential/other 268 The Park Residential: 3728, Commercial 82, *Non Residential/other 125 * Non Residential/other land is made up of industrial, primary production, vacant and other land uses. |
| What is the breakdown of the $3.6m in efficiency savings achieved over the past four years? | Since 2012, Council has delivered over $4.3 million in recurrent savings. This term of Council has delivered savings totalling $3.2 million (to 30 June 2018). At Budget Review 1, savings of $404 were delivered (see page 313 of Report item 7.2 in 11 September 2018 Full Council Agenda). The efficiency and effectiveness program commenced in 2012, aiming to reduce costs, optimise business processes and improving service delivery. Savings include a broad range of improvements in effectiveness and efficiency. Savings have occurred across most areas of Council business in procurement and contracts, staffing, increased revenue, service changes such as in-source and out-sourcing, asset maintenance program improvements, process and system automation and so on. Savings are reported to Council as part of the Budget Review process, with the majority of savings usually achieved at Budget Review 1. The last Budget Review was on 20 September 2018 which can be accessed here:Council Agenda 11 September 2018 For more detail of all savings, these can be found in the budget review 1 decision reports, which are in Council Agendas, with Budget Review 1 occurring around September each year. |
| Are there plans being developed and information about the Hawthorndene Oval? | A report was discussed at the council meeting on the 14 November 2017 14 November 2017 Council Meeting |
| Can I view the 2014 Campaign Donation Returns for Candidates? | A person is entitled to inspect a copy of a Candidate Donation Return without charge during ordinary business hours at the principal office of the Council: 131 Belair Road, Torrens Park. A person is also entitled upon payment of a fee fixed by Council ($2.30) to obtain a copy of a return. |
| Mortlock Park "Fund my Neighbourhood Project" | This project has steadfastly progressed since the programme was initially announced by the then State Labour Government in August 2017. The programme has gone through two engagement processes and a report is scheduled for presentation to Council on 9 October 2018: Full Council Agenda and Minutes Web Page Further information on the project can be viewed at this link: |
| An anonymous question was asked at the Craigburn Meet the Candidates Information Session. Can you please confirm that similar anonymous questions will be allowed at the other meet the candidates meetings in future? | The anonymous question asked at the Craigburn session was provided to the facilitator on the evening which asked the question of the candidates regarding their membership or otherwise of a political party. Since the Craigburn session, this same question has been asked at every session which has been registered by the same person. At no other session have anonymous questions been asked of the candidates. The issue has been discussed with the external facilitator and it has been confirmed that all persons wishing to ask a question from the audience will be required to first state their name and suburb before positing their question. Anonymous questions will not be accepted. |
Voting
Question | Answer |
| I'm going away during the Elections, when can I vote? | The Local Government Elections are conducted via postal voting. Ballot papers will be sent to all households between 22 October and 26 October 2018. Therefore you can vote any time from when you receive your ballot and the closing date which is Friday 9 November 2018. |
| Can I just put a "1" in the box on the ballot for the person I want to vote for? | The answer is both yes and no. You must have at least as many numbers in the box as there are vacancies. For example: NO: In a election with five candidates, but two vacancies, you must use the number one and two to complete a valid ballot. YES: In an election with three candidates, but one vacancy, you must use the number one to complete a valid ballot. Please view the Electoral Commission Website for further information, which can be accessed via this link: Electoral Commission SA Voting in council elections |
All material on this website is authorised by Matthew Pears, Chief Executive Officer, City of Mitcham, 131 Belair Road, Torrens Park SA 5062.