Hobart deputy lord mayor-elect Ben Lohberger has lost his council seat, leaving the role vacant just two days after he won it.
The Tasmanian Electoral Commission finalised the councillor count just after 11:30am today, with Lohberger missing out on one of the nine seats.
Lohberger won the deputy lord mayor race on Saturday, overtaking former Liberal MP Simon Behrakis on preferences to win by 3,439 votes.
He finished the final count with 14,230 votes to Behrakis’s 10,791 or 56.9% of the vote after preferences, after trailing Behrakis on first preferences 17.9% to 18.4%.
But the deputy lord mayor must also hold a seat on council.
Lohberger won 1,317 first preferences or 4.4%, in the councillor count, up 1.3 points on 2022 and was in a winning position partway through the count before missing out in the final result.
The new council will now choose a deputy lord mayor from among its members.
Lord mayor-elect Charles Wooley topped the councillor count with 14.8% of first preferences.
John Kelly, Bill Harvey, Ryan Posselt, Behrakis, newcomer Harvey Lennon, Louise Elliot, Mike Dutta and Zelinda Sherlock were also elected.
Lohberger, who has been on council since 2022, ran as an independent and described himself in campaign material as “a true independent who works for the community”.
His campaign centred on integrity, community and hard work and he promised “community representation, fiscal responsibility and a steady hand” as deputy.
His listed priorities included gifts and donations, removing councillor perks, short stay accommodation, the Halls Saddle visitor hub and the stadium.
During the campaign, he said all-weather access for the proposed kunanyi/Mount Wellington cable car “is dangerous and should be ruled out”.
He also backed removing councillors’ parking meter exemption, a motion that was lost 4-8 in March.
Lohberger was one of three sitting councillors to lose their seats, along with Marti Zucco and Louise Bloomfield, as the council was cut from 12 members to nine.
He has not responded to multiple requests for comment from Pulse since winning the deputy lord mayor race, but spoke to ABC Radio this morning before the count was finalised.
“I haven’t been elected as a councillor yet and if I fail in that race, I will not be elected at all,” he said.
He said he did not mind the wait, but suggested the commission consider “counting the councillor votes first” at future elections “so that we all know where we stand”.
Lohberger also criticised the state government’s decision to cut the number of councillors.
“No money saved for ratepayers whatsoever,” he said. “There’s just less representation.”
Fellow deputy lord mayor candidate Behrakis said he felt for Lohberger after “quite the tumultuous count”.
“I called Ben yesterday to concede to him and congratulate him,” he told Pulse this afternoon.
Behrakis said he would likely nominate for the role himself when the new council votes on the deputy position.
“I’d be interested in nominating for the position myself,” he said.
He said the matter “would be best dealt with as quickly, diplomatically and amicably as possible regardless of who wins”.
Elliot said she was undecided about whether to nominate for deputy lord mayor.
“I have empathy for how that must feel,” she said of Lohberger’s loss. “That’s the nature of the democratic beast.”
John Kelly, who received the second highest number of first preferences in the race, is also said to be considering nominating for deputy lord mayor.
Speaking to Pulse this afternoon, Kelly said he “wants to see what the final makeup of council is and go from there”.
