‘Dutton Reacts to NSW Liberal Fiasco: Candidates Left Unregistered for Election, Resulting in Disappointment’
Due to a failure to submit nominations on time, eight local councils will not have a Liberal Party candidate in the upcoming elections.
The day after a paperwork mishap at New South Wales’ Liberal Party headquarters, federal leader Peter Dutton expressed his “deep disappointment” regarding the exclusion of numerous party candidates from council ballots.
“I hope they can resolve the issue, clearly an administrative error where the forms weren’t submitted on time,” Dutton stated on 2GB radio.
Dutton mentioned that discussions about the party’s next steps were underway.
Surprisingly, eight local councils, including some in strong Liberal Party areas, will face statewide elections without a party candidate due to missing the Wednesday deadline for nominations.
An additional nine councils have incomplete candidate coverage, indicating a significant oversight by the party.
By the time potential candidates were notified, it was too late for them to submit nominations for the September council elections.
The affected councils include Northern Beaches, Lane Cove, Camden, and Campbelltown in Sydney, as well as Cessnock, Wollongong, Shoalhaven, and Blue Mountains in regional areas, some of which have secure Liberal seats in the state parliament.
Opposition Leader Mark Speakman called for the resignation of state party director Richard Shields, citing it as “the worst act of mismanagement in the organisation’s history.”
Mayor Shields attributed the error to a lack of resources and apologized to the Liberal-endorsed candidates who were not nominated.
Despite the calls for resignation, Shields resisted on Aug. 15.
On Sept. 14, over 4 million NSW voters will cast their votes to elect more than 1,000 councillors to local governments.
Deputy NSW Liberal Leader Natalie Ward criticized Shields for failing to manage party constitution and electoral matters properly.
