A MONTH is a long time in politics, and the esprit de corps among councillors with regard to September’s mayoral vote cannot be guaranteed to last.
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But, then again, it might.
Based on performance, there seems to be no reason why either mayor Gary Rush or deputy Ian North would be rolled from the city’s top jobs, but these decisions come down to much more than performance.
The inevitable tensions that exist between councillors play a part in every mayoral vote and this year’s vote will see another important factor come into play: the looming council elections in September 2016.
As the final mayoral vote before the next council elections it would not surprise to see a big field of candidates throw their hats in the ring for the deputy’s job, in particular.
Because while Cr Rush looks to have a solid bloc of support to keep his job, the numbers may not be as secure for Cr North.
And carrying the tag of deputy mayor for 12 months leading into a council election could be worth a few extra votes for any councillors who are planning to run again.
Four years ago, at the last mayoral vote before the 2012 council elections, five councillors were in the running to become Gerg Westman’s deputy before Tracey Carpenter was the victor after four rounds of voting and two draws from a hat.
It might be unrealistic to hope for that sort of fun when councillors vote for the mayor and deputy next month, but there is still plenty of time yet for some sort of twist in this tale.