Fresh blood on all Valley councils

A mix of familiar faces and first-timers will be sitting around Thames Valley’s two district councils for the next three years, following Saturday’s local body elections.
Preliminary results for the local elections for both Hauraki District Council and Thames-Coromandel District Council have been released, and as of Monday morning, it looks to be business as usual for some, and a new career path for others.
In Hauraki’s Waihī Ward, only Anne Marie Spicer is making a return to her seat as a councillor for another triennium, with three newcomers – Sarah Holmes, Bhavesh Ranchhod, and Josh Martyn – being elected by voters to sit alongside her.
The fifth representative for Waihī will be Austin Rattray, who was a councillor for the ward back in 2016-2019.
Across in Paeroa, all four current councillors – Paul Milner, Carole Anne Daley, Rino Wilkinson, and Jo Tilsley – will sit on council for the next three years, with newcomers Mike Bennett and Melba Pakinga missing out this term.
In the Plains, there will be two new and two returning representatives.
Current councillors Ray Broad and Phillip Buckthought have been re-elected, alongside highest-polling ward candidate Neil Gray, and Stephen Crooymans.
Over in Thames-Coromandel, councillors for the Thames ward, as at Monday, will be Robyn Sinclair and Martin Rodley, both returning for a second term, as well as Peter Revell, who was on the Thames Community Board for 2019-2022.
The four members selected for the Thames Community Board are: Adrian Catran, Holly MacKenzie, Rob Johnston, and Kishan Raikwar – who is sitting at 1750 votes.
Close behind but currently out of contention is Fiona Cameron, with 1717 votes.
According to Thames-Coromandel District Council, the Declaration of Official Results will be announced in a public notice by its electoral officer on Friday, October 14, subject to recounts.
Meanwhile, Waikato Regional Council’s Thames-Coromandel constituency will be represented by Warren Maher, who has narrowly supplanted incumbent Denis Tegg by 335 votes. The Waihou constituency will be represented by two candidates: Ben Dunbar-Smith, and Robert Cookson.
Hauraki’s Mayor Toby Adams had already been re-elected unopposed, and Len Salt was voted Thames-Coromandel Mayor.