Successful council candidate inspired to stand after attending tragic road crash
From local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask;
A farmer inspired to stand after a roading tragedy will be sworn in as a new district councillor this week.
Rob Mackle was announced as the likely winner of the Western Ward by-election on Thursday.
The provisional result after voting closed at midday on Friday had Mackle out in front by a clear enough margin over the other candidates.
With 98% of ballots counted, Mackle was on 655 votes, well ahead of Hayden Tasker on 467, Dame Lynda Topp on 409, and Carol Johns on 126.
“I’m very humbled that the people have put their faith in me,” Mackle said.
“I’m looking forward to doing what I can for the area and hoping I can prove my worth.”
There will be little time for the farmer come first-time councillor to settle into the role as he will be sworn in at next week’s meeting.
“Obviously because I’m a bit green I’ve got a fair bit to learn, so it will be taking it all in for a start but keen to get stuck into it.
“No doubt I’ll get a lot of support from the council to get me up to speed so it doesn’t faze me at all.”
Mackle was inspired to pursue a council seat after being first on the scene of a fatal crash near Ashburton in 2019, where he performed CPR on an 8-month-old baby who later died in hospital.
“It rattled me quite a bit and I just thought I should be something a little bit more around the district.”
He said a core personal focus is to “see a lot more maintenance and repairs going on around the district”.
He is well aware the issue around funding increased roading improvements is a trickle-down effect from Wellington but is keen to “make enough noise to make it happen”.
As the success of his campaign sunk in yesterday, he offered commiserations to the other candidates after a “fair old battle”, and expects to see them all back on the nominations list in the next local body elections in 2025.
The by-election followed the sudden death of second-term councillor Rodger Letham in December.
Mackle will also sit on the Methven Community Board alongside fellow Western Ward councillor and deputy mayor Liz McMillan.
The voter turnout in the Western Ward, the vast majority of the area west of State Highway 1 to the southern alps incorporating Methven, Mayfield and Mt Somers, was lower than in last year’s election.
There were 1668 votes cast (excluding special votes and votes delivered after the ballot boxes closed at midday) equating to 38.89% of the eligible voters, down on the 53.47% turnout (2,316 votes) in October.
Best way to use leftovers?
I'm sure you've got some excess ham at home or cold roast potatoes.
What are some of your favourite ways to use leftover food from Christmas day? Share below.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
-
61.8% Summer
-
36.7% Winter
-
1.5% Other - I'll share below
Loading…
