A Labor majority in the Inner West Council is up in the air after requests for a recount in two wards, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Zoi Tsardoulias and Timothy Stephens became the party’s seventh and eighth representatives on the 15-person council following the declaration of results on Monday, with their elections to the second Labor spot in Marrickville-Midjuburi and Leichhardt-Gulgadya wards respectively.
However, independent Victor Macri is calling for a recount to scrutinise Ms Tsardoulias’ narrow win in Marrickville-Midjuburi.
“It’s nothing personal against Zoi, she’s a fantastic person and I have a lot of respect for her,” Mr Macri told the newspaper.
Mr Macri explained how a high percentage of informal votes went to Labor and he wanted them “looked at” to “make sure they’re okay.”
Labor’s majority in Leichhardt-Gulgadya may also be reviewed following a request for a recount after former Liberal councillor Vittoria Raciti, who ran as an independent in the December 4 polls, failed to win a spot.
A recalculation of results could influence the council’s treatment of the successful vote to de-merge the amalgamated council into its three predecessors, Marrickville, Ashfield and Leichhardt.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald.
