Have you ever wanted to put your hand up for local government? Residents of the Mid Coast Ward in the City of Onkaparinga now have that opportunity.

A supplementary election will be held to fill the Mid Coast Ward councillor vacancy, following the resignation of Councillor Beau Cowan last month.

Nominations to become an elected member open on Thursday 23 July and close at 12 noon on Thursday 6 August. Nomination kits will be available to collect from the council’s Noarlunga office, Ramsay Place, Noarlunga Centre from Monday 20 July 2020. 

A candidate briefing session will be held in the Civic Room at the council offices at 6.30pm on Wednesday 29 July 2020. Bookings are essential and can be made by sending an email to [email protected]. Aspiring councillors must include their name and phone number for confirmation. 

Those who are enrolled to vote should receive voting papers in the post in mid-August (according to the council, they will be posted out between Tuesday 18 August and Monday 24 August).

Voting closes at 12 noon on Monday 7 September 2020.

The new elected member will be working alongside fellow Mid Ward councillor Bill Jamieson. 

The elected member will be expected to attend council meetings, which are held monthly on a Tuesday evening at the Noarlunga Council Chamber. They may also be required to attend other various committee meetings throughout the month, as well as community and civic events on behalf of the council.

The allowance paid to City of Onkaparinga councillors, as determined by the Remuneration Tribunal of South Australia, is currently set at $24,218. This amount is adjusted periodically to reflect the changes in CPI.

Councillor Beau Cowan’s resignation came weeks after he shared on his Facebook page that he was fighting cancer. In May, Beau revealed cancerous growths were discovered on his thyroid gland in late 2019. After having major surgery January and a full thyroidectomy in February, further cancerous cells were discovered in his lymph nodes. He shared that he was undergoing treatment for hypothyroidism and would be commencing radio iodine treatment.

The Mid Coast Ward covers the suburbs of Lonsdale, Reynella, O'Sullivan Beach, Christie Downs, Christies Beach, Noarlunga Downs, Port Noarlunga, Port Noarlunga South and Seaford Meadows.

For full details about the supplementary election, see: https://www.onkaparingacity.com/Council/Council-elections