Tamah Alley retains Central Otago mayoralty

Tamah Alley has been elected Central Otago’s mayor, retaining the seat she was thrust into 12 months ago. 

Alley became Central Otago’s mayor in October last year after the resignation of Tim Cadogan. She was appointed after a vote by fellow councillors at the time.

Progress results have Alley with 5130 votes, well ahead of Charlie Sanders' 1886 and Mark Quinn's 1318.

In a statement Alley said the result was a vote for shared direction not individual leadership.

“This isn’t about one person. It’s about a community choosing a direction,” she said. “We will be one team for Central Otago, listening first, deciding wisely, and delivering fairly.”

She thanked voters for their trust and said she is committed to serving every part of the district with integrity, openness and respect.

A new “People’s Council” approach will be introduced, including pop-up council hui around the district, trialling citizens’ assemblies, youth engagement, and plain-language summaries that explain how public feedback shaped decisions.

Sustainability will also be a key focus. Alley outlined plans to prioritise long term stewardship of the region’s resources. This includes investment in a new organics facility, developing more balanced income streams to reduce rates pressure, and protecting what she described as the “local character” that makes Central Otago
unique.

“We’ll choose solutions that are smart for our economy, sustainable for our environment, and soulful for our way of life,” she said.

Representing the council in the Cromwell Ward looks to be Cheryl Laws (1752), Sarah Browne (1697), Charlie Sanders (1381) and Bob Scott (1280).

Four candidates are elected to the Cromwell Community Board to sit alongside three appointed councillors. Incumbents Anna Harrison and Wally Sanford were re-elected with 1711 and 1371 votes respectively and are joined by newcomers Rebecca Anderson (1533) and Mike Casey (1344).

In the district's other wards, Stu Duncan was elected in Maniototo, Curtis Pannett in Teviot Valley, and the four councillors representing Vincent are provisionally Tracy Paterson, Martin McPherson, Nathan McLean and Dave McKenzie.

However, McKenzie has just a 42-vote lead on Louise van der Voort with special votes still to come.

The voter return was 47.33 per cent, being 8480 votes, excluding votes in transit to the processing centre and special
votes.