Central Coast council covers the entire Central Coast region between Sydney and the Hunter region. The council is bounded at the southern edge by the Hawkesbury River and at the northern edge by Lake Macquarie.
The council extends from Patonga in the south to Lake Munmorah in the north, and also covers Gosford, Woy Woy, Erina, Kariong, Copacabana, Avoca Beach, Umina Beach, Wyoming, Niagara Park, Wamberal, Terrigal, Bateau Bay, Killarney Vale, Berkeley Vale, Tuggerah, Wyong, The Entrance, Budgewoi and Toukley.
The council has a population of about 349,000 as of 2022. It is the third most populous council in New South Wales.
- Wards
- Incumbent councillors
- History
- Candidate summary
- Assessment
- 2017 results
- Vote breakdown by ward
- Results maps
Wards
Central Coast is divided into five wards, with each ward electing three councillors.
Budgewoi ward covers the north-eastern corner of the new council. The ward covers those suburbs previously contained in Wyong council on the southern end of Lake Macquarie, including Lake Munmorah, Moonee, Gwandalan, Chain Valley Bay, Doyalson, Budgewoi, Toukley, Charmhaven and Buff Point.
Gosford East ward covers south-eastern parts of the new council, including Erina, Terrigal, Kincumber, Avoca Beach, Copacabana and Saratoga.
Gosford West ward covers the south-west of the new council, including the rural hinterland of the former Gosford council, as well as the suburbs of Gosford, Kariong, Woy Woy, Umina Beach and Ettalong Beach.
The Entrance ward covers the suburbs on the southern side of Tuggerah Lakes, including The Entrance, Berkeley Vale, Killarney Vale, Bateau Bay and Forresters Beach.
Wyong ward covers the north-west of the council, including Wyong, Tacoma, Tuggerah, Warnervale, Tuggerawong, Wallarah, Ourimbah, Niagara Park, Narara, Wyoming and North Gosford.
Incumbent councillors
The current council was suspended on 30 October 2020. The council was first run by administrator Dick Persson until until May 2021, when he was succeeded by Rik Hart.
History
Central Coast Council was created out of a merger of Gosford and Wyong councils in 2016. The 2017 guide covers the previous history of these two councils and how much of the new council came from its predecessors.
While both major parties have competed in both councils over the last two decades, neither were dominant in either council, with a large independent bloc in each council.
Labor won six seats at the first election in 2017, alongside four Liberals and five independents.
At the 2017 mayoral election, independent councillor Jane Smith was elected mayor. She was supported by the four Liberals and two other independents in the first round and then won with the vote of Chris Holstein after he was knocked out of the race. Holstein won the deputy mayoral race with the support of the same councillors as those who voted for Smith.
This alliance did not hold at the 2019 mayoral election. Smith flipped to support Labor mayoral candidate Lisa Matthews, along with fellow independent Louise Greenaway (who had supported Labor in 2017). Labor and Greenaway then supported Smith for deputy mayor.
The council announced in late 2020 that a debt of $89 million was discovered. This led to the suspension of the council and the appointment of an administrator, Dick Persson. Persson was succeeded by Rik Hart in May 2021.
The ALP is the only party running candidates across the entire council.
Former Gosford mayor Lawrie McKinna is running an independent team in every ward – his allied independents are marked with his name in the full candidate list.
The Liberal Party is running a full ticket in three wards, running two candidates in Gosford East (a nomination error) and is absent in Budgewoi Ward (apparently not a nomination error but a deliberate choice).
The Greens and Central Coast Heart are both running for Budgewoi, while Animal Justice are running for The Entrance.
There are also five other independent groups running across the council. One of those groups is lead by Doug Eaton, a Liberal Party member contesting the Budgewoi ward without Liberal opposition.
The full candidate list is at the end of this guide.
Referendum
A referendum will be held alongside the 2024 election as to whether the council should be reduced in size from fifteen to nine, which would be achieved by reducing the number of wards to three. The Tally Room is supporting a No vote in that referendum, and I will write more about this issue closer to the election.
Assessment
There are a lot of unknowns in this election. After four years with a council, we don’t know whether voters will return to their old habits or elect new representatives.
The ALP is running in every ward and should win one seat in each ward.
The Liberal Party is running in four wards, although they failed to run a full ticket in Gosford East, their best ward. They should be able to win one seat there, but that nomination error will likely rule out the possibility of winning a second seat in that ward. Independent candidate Eaton seems to fill the role otherwise taken by the Liberal Party in Budgewoi. The Liberal Party should win a seat in each ward, with Eaton winning in Budgewoi.
This leaves one more seat in each ward and there are a large range of options. Labor’s vote was strongest in Budgewoi in 2017 so they could be a contender for a sixth seat there.
McKenna is running in every ward with a high profile and could do well.
| Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats won |
| Other independents | 59,805 | 31.54 | +1.9 | 5 |
| Labor | 57,265 | 30.20 | +7.0 | 6 |
| Liberal | 46,751 | 24.65 | -6.6 | 4 |
| Greens | 14,834 | 7.82 | -1.6 | |
| Save Tuggerah Lakes | 10,986 | 5.79 | -0.8 | |
| Informal | 15,893 | 7.73 |
Labor topped the primary vote across the council, with their vote much higher in Budgewoi Ward at the northern end of the council. Their vote ranged from 22.2% in Gosford East to 43.3% in Budgewoi. Labor won two seats in Budgewoi and one in every other ward.
The Liberal vote ranged from 16.7% in Budgewoi to 37.4% in Gosford East.
The Greens ran in four wards, with a vote ranging from 7.8% in Budgewoi to 11.2% in The Entrance.
There was a large vote for a number of independents, with a total vote ranging from 30.3% in Gosford East to 47.3% in Wyong. One independent was elected in each ward.
| Ward | ALP % | LIB % | GRN % | Others % |
| Budgewoi Ward | 43.3 | 16.7 | 7.8 | 32.3 |
| Gosford East Ward | 22.2 | 37.4 | 10.1 | 30.3 |
| Gosford West Ward | 25.6 | 22.2 | 10.1 | 42.0 |
| The Entrance Ward | 27.7 | 26.4 | 11.2 | 34.7 |
| Wyong Ward | 32.2 | 20.6 | 0.0 | 47.3 |
Election results at the 2017 Central Coast Council election
Toggle between primary votes for Labor, the Liberal Party, independent candidates and the Greens.
Candidates – Budgewoi Ward
- A – Greens
- Sue Wynn
- Chantelle Baistow
- Cath Connor
- B – Unaffiliated
- Douglas Eaton
- Allan McDonald
- Greg Best
- C – Labor
- Helen Crowley
- Joy Cooper
- Sarah Burns
- D – Lawrie McKinna Independents
- John Mouland
- Paul Wade
- Mitchell Cowan
- E – Central Coast Heart
- Edna Wacher
- Diana Lazatin
- Anabelle Alcanar
- Ungrouped
- Sandra Harris
- Kenneth Kozak
Candidates – Gosford East Ward
- A – Lawrie McKinna Independents
- Lawrie McKinna
- Pat Farmer
- George Paterson
- B – Labor
- Sharon Walsh
- Trevor Drake
- Victoria Collins
- C – Liberal
- Jared Wright
- Dee Bocking
- Ungrouped
- Clive Lawton
- Sharon Andrews
- Rosemary De Lambert
- David Kings
Candidates – Gosford West Ward
- A – Lawrie McKinna Independents
- Daniel Abou-Chedid
- Paul Chapman
- Neil Ferguson
- B – Independent
- Jane Smith
- Alison Wade
- Lisa Wriley
- C – Independent
- Kevin Brooks
- Stephen Sizer
- Lee Erlin
- D – Liberal
- Trent McWaide
- Alan Pappas
- Kylie Lowbridge
- E – Labor
- Belinda Neal
- Adam McArdle
- Mark Ellis
- F – Independent
- Lisa Bellamy
- Sarah Blakeway
- Tegan Mulqueeney
- Ungrouped
- Julian Richards
- Andrew Baker
Candidates – The Entrance Ward
- A – Labor
- Margot Castles
- Matthew Jeffrey
- Joan Pavitt
- B – Animal Justice
- Sarah Ryan
- Patrick Murphy
- Fardin Pelarek
- C – Liberal
- Rachel Stanton
- Stephen Hood
- Tracey Perrem
- D – Independent
- Corinne Lamont
- Sam Carter
- Dale Long
- E – Lawrie McKinna Independents
- Sharryn Brownlee
- Skaie Hull
- Kalvin Smith
- Ungrouped
- Rebecca Smiley
Candidates – Wyong Ward
- A – Liberal
- John McNamara
- Wade Russell
- Jennifer Ferguson
- B – Lawrie McKinna Independents
- Kyla Daniels
- Natasha Stone
- Alexander Burgin
- C – Labor
- Kyle Macgregor
- Evan Schrei
- Melanie Gould
- Ungrouped
-
- Michael Whittington
- Daniel Craig
- Jara Millward
Should be an interesting election after the council was dismissed for so long. At the last election, Labor, the Liberals, the Greens and independents all had seats. As usual, the parties did best where they did best on the federal and state levels (Labor did well in and around Wyong and Tuggerah and to a lesser extent in around Gosford and Woy Woy, while the Liberals did best in and around Terrigal (Terrigal is basically the Manly of the Central Coast) and to a lesser extent in and around The Entrance).
A crucial council to win control of, being one of the most populated in New South Wales and covering the entirety of the Central Coast, the third-largest city in New South Wales and a region that can decide federal and state elections, with the bellwether seat of The Entrance on the state level and Robertson on the federal level. This brings a question: is Gosford still considered a bellwether seat? The Entrance is a fairly safe Labor seat at the moment but usually it’s a marginal seat, but as of the 2023 state election it’s still the most marginal Labor seat that Labor held before the election (i.e the most marginal non-gained Labor seat).
Any thoughts on this council election?
Does this council have a mayoral election? Any thoughts on how that might play out?
In 2017, Labor won a plurality of the vote in four of the five wards: Budgewoi, Gosford West, The Entrance and Wyong. The Liberal Party won a plurality of the vote in Gosford East.
Gosford East includes a lot of the Liberal-voting suburbs of the Central Coast, including the most Liberal-friendly booths in the state seats of Gosford and The Entrance, as well as almost all of the state seat of Terrigal, which is currently the Liberal Party’s only Central Coast-based seat. The Liberal Party did well in The Entrance Ward but Labor had a narrowly higher vote.
The Greens did not have any council seats at the last election. There were certainly independent “greenies” but no members of ‘the Greens’ party.
This is one council that I can’t predict. It should be close.
Less close than it would have been if the Liberals had managed to nominate in Gosford East and run a full ticket in Budgewoi.
@Ben Raue that is true. Gosford East would typically be the best ward for the Liberals.
Assuming you really mean Gosford East and not Gosford West, in that case I would say Labor will win this one.
Now the question is whether or not the Liberals will win a majority of votes in any wards.
If they’re running in The Entrance they’d have a chance. They would’ve easily won Gosford East if they actually nominated.
Gosford West is a tossup. In terms of seat totals I reckon it’ll finish in a tie with a swing to the Liberals in vote totals but I don’t know whether Labor or the Liberals will finish first.
One thing I can help with re: Central Coast – the Liberals weren’t endorsing a ticket in Budgewoi Ward, so that’s not a consequence of what happened yesterday. Eaton is a LIB member but running in an unendorsed group. I’ve no clue what happened in Gosford East, though.
Ex Cllr, Mayor Lawrie McKinna is running in Gosford East on a full ticket across the region. He will pick up a lot of votes in and around Terrigal and is well known to sports fans acrooss the Central Coast. His team may win seats.
Do you know which groups are affiliated in each ward? I’ll mark them in the guide.
Here is the list of Mckinna’s team. https://coastcommunitynews.com.au/central-coast/news/2024/07/mckinna-announces-15-person-team-to-contest-council-election/
Thanks I’ve updated the guide to reflect their affiliations.
Independents are leading in Gosford East thanks to the Liberals not being above the line. Labor are ahead in Budgewoi (where there are no Liberals running) and Wyong.
But the Liberals are ahead in two words: Gosford West and The Entrance. This means Robertson could be in play federally, as could the state seats of Gosford and The Entrance. Terrigal is marginal but should be easily won by the Liberals.
The Liberals have done okay, except in Gosford East where they should’ve won easily.
Lawrie McKinna, a former soccer player and coach, has been elected Mayor of the Central Coast. He is an independent councillor for Gosford East.
Adam Crouch, the Liberal MP for Terrigal, congratulated McKinna on his election via an Instagram post and says he is looking forward to working constructively with the new Central Coast Council.
McKinna was born in Scotland and played as a striker for several clubs in Scotland and later in Australia between 1979 and 1997, before managing several clubs in Australia and China, including A-League side Central Coast Mariners from 2005 to 2010.