Hobart’s new Lord Mayor Charles Wooley has vowed to end the council “dogfight”, calling for “conciliation, reasonability, rationality rather than ideology” after winning the city’s top job.
The Tasmanian Electoral Commission declared the result shortly after 6:45pm tonight, with Wooley winning 55% of the final vote.
Speaking in a social media video shortly after Pulse broke the news of his win, the independent said the council had been “something of a divided place” over the past eight years, describing it as “a bit of a dogfight”.
“It is my devout hope that we can get nine reasonable people on this council,” he said.
Wooley also pledged to represent residents who did not vote for him, saying newly elected politicians often described themselves as humbled.
“I’ve got to think that really I’d be rather more humbled if you haven’t voted for me,” he said.
“I recognise that plenty of you didn’t and I’ll be seeking to represent you as much as I’ll be representing the people who voted for me and I’ll be trying to win you over too.”
Repeating his campaign slogan, “Hobart for Hobartians”, Wooley said he wanted to sell the city to the world as well as to its residents.
“Let us say that we’re all residents of this great city, a city that I know we all love,” he said.
“Not much more to say except that the work starts now.”
Greens candidate Bill Harvey led after count nine, with 9,992 votes to Wooley’s 9,155.
The result was decided when third-placed John Kelly, who had 8,458 votes, was excluded and his preferences were distributed.
Election analyst Kevin Bonham, who unofficially called the result around 4pm, said Wooley had won the vacant lord mayoralty without having served on the council.
“This has never happened in Hobart before,” he said.
The 77-year-old spent more than 25 years with 60 Minutes and is a former deputy mayor of Sorell. He has said he will serve only one term.
During the campaign, Wooley promised to add reason to the council’s focus on roads, rates and rubbish.
In September, he told Pulse rates in the Hobart City Council area were too high and questioned why the council charged for parking on Sundays.
He also said he would have preferred the Macquarie Point stadium to be built elsewhere, but the decision had passed through parliament and the city had to make it work.
Hobart was guaranteed a new lord mayor after Anna Reynolds chose not to recontest after eight years in the role.
Counting continues for the nine councillor seats and the deputy lord mayor role.
