
ONE of Bathurst's longest-serving councillors doesn't foresee another council term in his future.
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Bobby Bourke lost his position on Bathurst Regional Council in last month's local government election, unable to attract enough votes to secure a fifth term.
He was one of four incumbents on the ballot paper to not be returned, the others being Alex Christian, John Fry and Jacqui Rudge.
The election result was yet another blow for Mr Bourke, who has had quite the fall from grace since becoming mayor in 2019.
He resigned from the city's top job in July, 2021 after it was alleged he had been involved in a blackmail attempt against then Cr Rudge.
While he continues to deny the allegations against him, police charged him with blackmail and misconduct in public office in November.
Bathurst businessman Darryl Leahey was also charged with blackmail.
Despite the way his time on council ended, Mr Bourke is still proud of what achieved since becoming a Bathurst Regional councillor for the first time in 2005.
At the top of the list is helping to bring a crematorium to Bathurst, which he said took "10 to 12 years" to achieve.
"I had two elderly parents and I'd lost one of them and had to go to Orange behind the hearse," he said.
"I'd been campaigning for two or three years before that to get a crematorium and when I finally got that crematorium there, it really relieved me because that's what I connected to.
"Those people I cared about in the community didn't have to follow a hearse all the way to Orange."
Mr Bourke is also proud of the improvements to sporting fields, the development of the Bathurst Rail Museum, and the proposed medical centre for the central business district.
"I sat down meeting after meeting, tried to cut the red tape. I got the medical centre rolling," he said.
He also felt like he was a voice for people who are sometimes overlooked.
"I was just a knockaround bloke, there to listen to the knockaround people who are a little bit neglected when it comes down to deciding what we want done to the town," Mr Bourke said.
"We all live in it, but the knockaround, blue-collar workers don't really get a say, and I was one of them and got up to be the mayor, and I made sure I was their voice."
While no longer a councillor, he will stay involved in the city through the Bathurst Community Pp Shop and his work with the homeless.
He said he has no intention to make a serious run for council again, however he is open to the idea of supporting another candidate's bid as a number three, four or five on their ticket.
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