Fourteen candidates vie for nine council seats

There are 14 candidates running for nine seats on the Grey District Council.

Nominations closed at noon today, and voting papers – including a booklet with information on each candidate – will be in the post from September 9.

There are two people running for Mayor – incumbent Tania Gibson, and Richmond Osmaston, from the Money Free Party New Zealand.

There are also 12 in the running for eight councillor roles.

The Central Ward has the highest number of candidates, with five running for three seats: Kaia Beal, incumbent Peter Davy, Ritchie Mathieson, and incumbents Timothy Mora and Jack O’Connor.

In the Southern Ward, four are running for two seats: incumbent John Canning, Paulette Birchfield, Terry Donaldson, and incumbent Rex MacDonald.

In the Northern Ward, just one candidate stood, incumbent Kate Kennedy. No election is required.

In the Eastern Ward, incumbents Allan (Pesty) Gibson and Robert Mallinson are running for two seats. No election is required.

Development West Coast has five candidates for its Grey district seat: Penny Bicknell, Michelle Coates, Shari Ferguson, Carolyn (Caz) Taylor, and Andy Thompson.

This year, the Grey District Council will offer all candidates the opportunity to appear in a short video. This will be posted on our Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok pages. A copy will also go on our You Tube channel.

To encourage voting, we will be taking a voting bin on a Rav vehicle – Vote With The Roving Rav – around the district. We are planning to take special votes while roving. More information will be released before ballot papers are sent out.

There will also be voting bins out and about in the community from September 10.

Voting closes at noon on October 12.

To register to vote, head to: -Check your eligibility - Electoral Commission (vote.nz)