Mrs Petrie performed her last official duty at 11am on Wednesday, August 23 in front of Tenterfield Shire Council offices in Bruxner Park, declaring Bob Rogan the winning candidate.

See her in action here…

Mrs Petrie has worked during elections before but this by-election is the first time she’s been involved in the returning officer capacity. Now she’s planning her retirement from the post.

“It was a huge task, and this was just one ward,” she said.

It’s also the first time the NSW Electoral Commission has based a returning officer in Tenterfield for an election it has overseen. In the past the Glen Innes returning officer looked after both sites.

Mrs Petrie was full of praise for Noelene Hyde and helpers who ran the process on behalf of Tenterfield Shire Council at last year’s local government elections, now that she knows what’s involved.

While Mrs Petrie may not have been the commission’s first choice for this gig, circumstances led to her being asked in late June if she’d like to take on the role. After a weekend’s consideration she accepted the contract, and it’s been a sometimes hectic ride since her first official day on July 10 when candidate nominations opened.

Since then there’s been more than a few 12-hour days and she was pleased that the relatively high turnout for early voting kept her busy over the weeks leading up to polling day.

“I enjoy it,” she said.

“I like working with people.”