COL Murray has designs on a decade at the helm of Tamworth Regional Council.
Cr Murray is currently in his seventh term as mayor, and he looks likely to nominate for another two-year term when the mayoral poll is held in September.
If he’s successful, it will take his tenure as mayor to the 10-year mark and up to the next council election in 2020.
Cr Murray has previously said this will be his last term as a councillor.
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It would be the second-longest run in the history of the job, surpassed only by Cr Murray’s predecessor James Treloar.
“There’ll be a mayoral election, as well as a deputy mayoral election in September,” Cr Murray said.
“That’ll create some interest within the organisation, I’m sure.”
While it’s about nine months away, he said he’s ready to put his hand up for the job.
“I’ll certainly be putting myself forward at this stage for position,” Cr Murray said.
“But, who knows, it’s another nine months away yet, so there’ll be a lot of water under the bridge between now and then.”
Cr Murray is in his fourth term as a councillor, first elected in 2004, and his seventh term as mayor.
He also served as deputy mayor for two years prior to taking the top job in 2010.
The mayor said he’s ready to keep taking on the challenges of the role.
“I enjoy the role and the challenges, at this stage, I’ll certainly be putting myself forward for that,” he said.
Former councillor James Treloar held the position of mayor for 14 years across his 29-year local government career.
Mayors Stanley Cole and Norman McKellar had decade-long runs in the 1960s and 1970s respectively.
Jacob McArthur
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
