| Mayor of the City of the Gold Coast | |
|---|---|
| Style | Councillor (Informal) His Worship (Formal) |
| Term length | 4 years |
| Deputy | Cr Donna Gates |
| Website | Gold Coast Mayor |
The Mayor of the City of the Gold Coast is presiding officer and public face of the Gold Coast City Council, [1] the local government body of the Gold Coast, Queensland. The current mayor is Tom Tate .
The mayor is charged with representing the city council and is popularly elected by residents of the City of Gold Coast local government area in local elections held every 4 years. The mayor presides over all council meetings; is the only councillor to not represent a specific Gold Coast electoral district; [2] and is the foremost representative of the Gold Coast City Council and its policies. [1]
The Gold Coast City Council reportedly maintains a budget of an estimated $1.83 billion annually, [3] among the highest of municipal governments in Australia. The mayor's office is located in the Southport Town Hall building in Southport, Queensland. [4]
Under the Local Government Act 2009 (Qld), [1] Chapter 2, Part 1, the mayor of any city in Queensland, including the Gold Coast and except for Brisbane, has the following responsibilities in addition to their duty as a councillor:
The Act further stipulates that "a councillor who is not the mayor may perform the mayor's extra responsibilities only if the mayor delegates the responsibility to the councillor," [1] while also stating that "when performing a responsibility, a councillor must serve the overall public interest of the whole local government area." [1]
The current Gold Coast mayor is Tom Tate. He was first elected on 28 April 2012 and re-elected on both 19 March 2016 and 28 March 2020 with more than two thirds of the preferential vote. [5]
| South Coast Mayor | Term |
|---|---|
| Len Peak | 1949–1958 |
| Gold Coast Mayor | Term |
| Ern Harley | 1958–1967 |
| Bruce Small | 1967–1973 |
| Robert Neumann | 1973–1976 |
| Bruce Small | 1976–1978 |
| John Andrews | 1978–1979 |
| Keith Hunt | 1979–1982 |
| Denis O'Connell | 1982–1985 |
| Denis Pie | 1985–1988 |
| Lex Bell | 1988–1994 |
| Ray Stevens | 1995–1997 |
| Gary Baildon | 1997–2004 |
| Ron Clarke | 2004–2012 |
| Tom Tate | 2012–present |
Prior to the South Coast council forming in 1948, ten local government areas existed between the City of Brisbane and the New South Wales border. Just four of those local government areas exist within modern day Gold Coast. Below is a list of the leaders of those areas:
Town of Coolangatta
| Shire of Coomera
| Shire of Nerang
| Town/Shire of Southport
|
On 9 December 1948, as part of a major reorganisation of local government in South East Queensland, an Order in Council created the Shire of Albert by amalgamating Shire of Beenleigh, Shire of Coomera, Shire of Nerang, the southern part of Shire of Tingalpa and the eastern part of Shire of Waterford. On 8 June 1978, the Shire of Logan was created which reduced the Shire of Albert to nearly a quarter of its previous population. The Shire of Albert was amalgamated with the Gold Coast City Council in 1995. With the exception of the Beenleigh – Eagleby region, which was transferred to Logan City in 2008, the area of the Albert Shire is still present in modern-day City of Gold Coast.
| Chairman | Term |
|---|---|
| Eric Gaven | 1949–1950 |
| Frank Oxenford | 1950–1952 |
| Alex Clark | 1952–1958 |
| Russ Hinze | 1958–1967 |
| Hugh Dunstan Muntz | 1967–1982 |
| Bill Laver | 1982–1994 |
| Ray Stevens | 1994–1995 |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent LNP | Tom Tate | 170,150 | 51.82 | -3.91 | |
| Independent | Eddy Sarroff | 68,061 | 20.73 | ||
| Independent | Danielle Dunsmore | 25,983 | 7.91 | ||
| Animal Justice | Jennifer Horsburgh | 18,130 | 5.52 | ||
| Independent | Rosie Foster | 14,642 | 4.46 | ||
| Independent | Lavinia Rampino | 9,137 | 2.78 | ||
| Independent LNP | Virginia Freebody | 7,800 | 2.38 | -3.23 | |
| Independent | Brett Lambert | 7,581 | 2.31 | ||
| Independent | Gary Pead | 6,846 | 2.09 | ||
| Total formal votes | 328,330 | 95.45 | |||
| Informal votes | 15,641 | 4.55 | |||
| Turnout | 343,971 | 79.94 | |||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent LNP | Tom Tate | 177,666 | 66.32 | -0.61 | |
| Independent | Eddy Sarroff | 90,218 | 33.68 | +33.68 | |
| Independent LNP hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Tom Tate | 151,579 | 55.73 | −8.13 | |
| Independent | Mona Hecke | 67,117 | 24.68 | +24.68 | |
| Independent | Brett Lambert | 17,083 | 6.28 | +3.22 | |
| Independent | Virginia Freebody | 15,260 | 5.61 | +5.61 | |
| Independent | Kris Bourban | 9,115 | 3.35 | +3.35 | |
| Independent | Gary Pead | 6,843 | 2.52 | +2.52 | |
| Civil Liberties & Motorists | Suphakan Somsriruen | 2,545 | 0.94 | +0.94 | |
| Independent | Derek Rosborough | 2,429 | 0.89 | +0.89 | |
| Turnout | 287,531 | 74.12 | |||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent | Tom Tate | 154,054 | 66.93 | −6.21 | |
| Independent | Mona Hecke | 76,126 | 33.07 | +33.07 | |
| Independent hold | Swing | −6.21 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Tom Tate | 172,735 | 63.86 | ||
| Independent | Penny Toland | 53,081 | 19.62 | ||
| Independent | Jim Wilson | 25,181 | 9.31 | ||
| Independent | Brett Lambert | 8,151 | 3.01 | ||
| Independent | Andrew Middleton | 5,978 | 2.21 | ||
| Independent | John Abbott | 5,369 | 1.98 | ||
| Total formal votes | 270,495 | 94.73 | |||
| Informal votes | 15,050 | 5.27 | |||
| Turnout | 285,545 | ||||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent | Tom Tate | 176,538 | 73.14 | ||
| Independent | Penny Toland | 64,826 | 26.86 | ||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Tom Tate | 83,876 | 37.05 | ||
| Independent | Eddy Sarroff | 40,958 | 18.09 | ||
| Independent | Susie Douglas | 35,417 | 15.65 | ||
| Independent | Peter Young | 26,977 | 11.92 | ||
| Independent | Dean Vegas | 20,868 | 9.22 | ||
| Independent | Keith Douglas | 14,702 | 6.49 | ||
| Independent | John Abbott | 3,568 | 1.58 | ||
| Total formal votes | 226,366 | 95.48 | |||
| Informal votes | 10,724 | 4.52 | |||
| Turnout | 237,090 | ||||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent | Tom Tate | 90,935 | 64.34 | ||
| Independent | Eddy Sarroff | 50,399 | 35.66 | ||
| Independent gain from Independent | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Ron Clarke | 79,463 | 35.62 | ||
| Liberal | Tom Tate | 59,585 | 26.71 | +26.71 | |
| Unite GC | Rob Molhoek | 57,605 | 25.82 | +25.82 | |
| Independent | John Bradford | 20,754 | 9.30 | ||
| Independent | Ray Schearer | 5,704 | 2.56 | ||
| Total formal votes | 223,111 | 95.71 | |||
| Informal votes | 10,005 | 4.29 | |||
| Turnout | 233,116 | ||||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent | Ron Clarke | 90,418 | 53.99 | ||
| Liberal | Tom Tate | 77,039 | 46.01 | +46.01 | |
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
The city is governed at the local level by the Gold Coast City Council, whose jurisdiction spans the Gold Coast, Queensland, and surrounding areas. [12] Based on resident population, it is the second largest local government area in Australia and its council maintains a staff of over 2,500. It was established in 1948, but has existed in its present form since 1995. [12]
Gold Coast City has been divided into 14 wards (known as divisions), each electing one councillor at elections held every four years. The most recent local government election was on 19 March 2016. [2]
Divisional Councillors are: [2]
The City of Logan is a local government area (LGA) located in the south of Greater Brisbane in South East Queensland (SEQ), Australia. Situated between the City of Brisbane to the north and the City of Gold Coast to the south, the City of Logan also borders the Scenic Rim Region, the City of Ipswich, and Redland City LGAs. Logan is divided into 70 suburbs and 12 divisions; a councillor is elected to each of the latter. The council had a population of 326,615 as of June 2018.
Albert was a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Queensland which existed from 1887 to 1949 and 1959 to 2017.
The City of Gold Coast is the local government area spanning the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and surrounding areas. With a population of 606,774, it is the second most populous local government area in the State of Queensland. Its council maintains a staff of over 2,500. It was established in 1948, but has existed in its present form since 2008. It is on the border with New South Wales with the Tweed Shire to the south in New South Wales.
The South Coast railway line was a railway from Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia. The route via the South Coast to Tweed Heads on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. The line operated from 1889 to 1964. Between 1903 and 1961 steam trains ran from Beenleigh to the NSW border. The Gold Coast railway line re-opened in 1996 along a modified alignment in the north and a new route south but does not extend as far south yet as the South Coast line.
The Shire of Beaudesert was a local government area located in South East Queensland, Australia, stretching from the New South Wales border, along the Gold Coast hinterland to the urban fringes of the cities of Brisbane and Ipswich. The Shire covered an area of 2,854.3 square kilometres (1,102.1 sq mi), and existed from 1879 until its abolition on 15 March 2008, following which it was split between Logan City and the new Scenic Rim Region.
The Fraser Coast Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about 250 kilometres (160 mi) north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is centred on the twin cities of Hervey Bay and Maryborough and also contains K'gari. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Cities of Maryborough and Hervey Bay and the Shires of Woocoo and most of Tiaro. The resident population at the 2021 census was 111,032 and the estimated population in 2023 was 117,940.
The Scenic Rim Region is a local government area (LGA) in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia, and is located approximately 80 kilometres due south of Brisbane. Established in 2008, it was preceded by several previous local government areas with histories extending back to the early 1900s and beyond. The main town of the region is Beaudesert.
The Shire of Albert was a local government area in Queensland, located south of the capital, Brisbane, and taking in areas to the north and west of the Gold Coast. It was named after the Prince Consort of the United Kingdom, and husband of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert. When created in 1948, it was primarily a rural area, but its growth started in earnest in the late 1960s with the development of Logan on Brisbane's southern frontier. After the separate creation of Logan as a shire in 1978, Albert lost most of its population and became more centred upon the Gold Coast, which experienced a massive period of growth from then until the Shire's amalgamation with the City of Gold Coast in 1995.
The Shire of Tingalpa was a local government area in the south-eastern suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The shire, administered from Mount Cotton, covered an area of 120 square miles (311 km2), and existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1949.
The Shire of Beenleigh is a former local government area in the south-east of Queensland, Australia, centred on the town of Beenleigh. It existed from 1879 to 1949.
The Shire of Cleveland is a former local government area in the south-east of Queensland, Australia, centred on the town of Cleveland beside Moreton Bay.
The Shire of Waterford is a former local government area in the south-east of Queensland, Australia, centred on the town of Waterford. It existed between 1879 and 1948.
The Shire of Coomera was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia. The shire, administered from Coomera, existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1949.
The Shire of Nerang was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia. The shire existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1949.
The Shire of Tamborine was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia, centred on the village of Tamborine. It existed from 1890 to 1949.
The Town of Southport was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia.
The Town of Coolangatta was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia, centred on Coolangatta. It existed from 1914 to 1949.
The Town of South Coast was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia.
Eric John Gaven was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly.
Beaudesert–Nerang Road is a major inter-regional arterial road that connects the township of Beaudesert with the Gold Coast via Canungra. The road commences in Nerang on the western edge of the Gold Coast and travels west through the Gold Coast hinterland and terminates in central Beaudesert at the intersection of Mount Lindesay Highway.
