IT’S a nervous wait for some of Tamworth’s councillors with preferences set to decide their fate.
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Helen Tickle, Phil Betts and Juanita Wilson’s future are in limbo as they await the distribution of preferences, set to be allocated on Friday morning.
Cr Tickle is in the best position with 2363 first-preference votes, Cr Betts is next best with 2032 and Cr Wilson is on 1999. Mark Rodda and Russell Webb are set to return and mayor Col Murray will only need a handful of preferences to get home.
Cr Betts said he’s “quietly confident” he will get over the line, but he admitted it couldn’t be taken for granted.
“The preferences can be fickle,” he said.
“Where I was positioned on the ballot paper; it’s a hard spot to come from.”
Cr Wilson said the preferences are unpredictable, but estimated the final standings would “sit roughly where it is”.
“If the end-product is what it reads now, it will be a well-balanced council,” she said. Cr Wilson’s fate now lay in the hands of the preference distribution, but she was concerned around the number of informal votes. There was 2446 informal votes, from 43,329 enrolled.
“A person’s vote needs to be empowered and there was a lot of confusion about how to vote at this election,” she said.
Cr Tickle said she was in a “comfortable position” and welcomed the idea of gaining some “fresh ideas and enthusiasm” on the council.