First council results decided

THREE experienced Frankston councillors have won their bids for election, with the rest of the results set to be confirmed this week.

Late last week, the Victorian Electoral Commission confirmed the results for Ballam, Centenary Park, and Derinya wards. Kris Bolam, Michael O’Reilly, and Brad Hill have each been elected for a four year term on council.
Bolam and Hill both served on Frankston Council during the most recent term. O’Reilly will return after a four-year absence. Bolam said he is “truly thrilled with the outcome” of the vote. “I think people know when they have a good thing and could see the great work that I had achieved on their behalf over the past four years,” he said.

After preferences were distributed, Bolam comfortably defeated former councillor Steven Hughes and Adam Marsal to win his ward. Michael O’Reilly defeated Maureen Rodgers by nearly 2000 votes, and Brad Hill bested incumbent deputy mayor Liam Hughes by a margin of roughly 7.2 percent.

Last week, the VEC counted the remaining votes it received after the postal deadline. In Kananook Ward, Greens candidate Emily Green has moved into first place on the first-preference count ahead of veteran councillor Glenn Aitken. The leaders in the other wards maintained their positions after the rest of the “Group B” votes were counted (“Former councillors take early lead” The Times 5/11/2024).

Preferences for the remaining wards will be distributed this week. The VEC will officially declare the Frankston Council election winners by 1pm on 13 November.

First published in the Frankston Times – 12 November 2024