By JESSE GRAHAM
WITH almost three months left to the Yarra Ranges Council’s elections, it’s time for potential candidates to consider throwing their hat into the ring.
The council’s election will be held on Saturday 22 October, and residents will choose their ward councillor to represent them for the coming four years.
Those wishing to stand up as a councillor must nominate by noon on nomination day, 32 days before the election, and pay a $250 fee to the Victorian Electoral Commission.
Yarra Ranges mayor Jason Callanan said one of the most important things a candidate should have before starting is support – whether it be from family or friends around them.
“If you don’t have family support in this, there’s no point doing it,” he said.
“You don’t have that backing behind you, the four years will be very hard for you.”
Speaking to the Mail on Tuesday 28 June, Cr Callanan said that potential candidates should be prepared to spend 20-30 hours per week on their work as a councillor if elected.
“It’s not a part-time, recreational job,” he said.
“My advice is that if you haven’t done any type of board experience in the past, go and do some of that.
“You don’t have to be politically savvy in this job … you just need to know how it works in there, how it works in that council room.”
Cr Callanan said candidates should seek advice during their campaign, and that he had started from scratch with his, running a letter drop from the back of his family car – and falling out once along the way.
“I had no idea – it was a real unknown, of ‘How do you do this?” he said.
“I guess I was a bit lucky, that I had a few people that I could turn to, to find out some advice.
“Don’t be too proud to ask lots of questions.”
He said that he had campaigned on roads, planning reform and projects that would impact families, such as playgrounds, footpaths and health.
Though he said councillors are “loaded” with information once they are elected, he said sticking to the issues that dominated the campaign was a good start.
“Some simple advice they gave me when I was about three, four weeks in by officers was, ‘What did you campaign for? Just stick to that, and work on that area … the rest will follow after that’,” Cr Callanan said.
Looking at the end of his first term in council, Cr Callanan said there had been “significant inroads” with planning, with the planning department merged with others, and that work had been done to get the council prepared for the State Government’s rate capping.
“Hearing from Len Cox, who’s been in this game for years, saying this is the best budget he’s ever seen goes to show that the work that this council has put in to reduce those rates,” he said.
He said the focus of his re-election campaign will be on fixing roads, using his knowledge from his time in council.
The $250 candidacy fee is refunded if the candidate is elected, or receives four per cent or more of first preference votes.
The Yarra Ranges Council will be running a Candidate Information Session on Thursday 30 June, from 6pm to 8pm, at the Lilydale Library on Anderson Street.
For more information about standing for council, visit www.vec.vic.gov.au, or www.standforcouncil.com.au
