Carol Schiffmann and Mary Leahy.
THE wait to see who will be Tenterfield’s new faces on council is expected to end today with the announcement of the successful candidates.
The controversial 2012 local government election was yesterday winding to a nail-biting finish, with several wards still up in the air.
Saturday’s election will see some old faces return, some miss out, and new faces taking their seat at the first council meeting later this month.
Tenterfield’s highest polling candidate was Carol Schiffmann in D Ward with 41.37 per cent of the vote in that ward in initial first preference results.
Also popular was deputy mayor Peter Petty who polled 37.43 per cent in initial results in A Ward.
Mr Petty confirmed this week he would put his hand up for the position of mayor.
“It was a good result,” Mr Petty said.
“All I concentrated on was the achievements of council over the last four years out in the villages when I was at candidate meetings.”
Mr Petty said while there had been “a lot of argy bargy” between candidates in some of the other wards, A Ward had seen a clean campaign.
He said he hoped unsuccessful candidates would not be discouraged from running again at the next election.
Another face to return to council will be C Ward’s Brian Murray who said he believed he had not “stood a chance” against the higher profile campaigns of candidates Mary Leahy and Bob South.
“This has probably been the most exciting election ever in Tenterfield,” Mr Murray said.
On Monday, Ms Leahy and Mr South, the only two other candidates in C Ward, were both polling at 30.7 per cent.
Yesterday, Ms Leahy had pulled ahead slightly.
