Yesterday, Crs Vandervis and Mayhem both confirmed their bids to be Dunedin’s next mayor.
They will join incumbent Jules Radich and car dealer and Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board chairman Andrew Simms in the race ahead of local body elections in October.
Cr Vandervis said he was motivated to stand because Dunedin needed a strong leader who knew "what to do, and will get it done".
"No-one else will do them — unitary council, unpopular things like [the] sale of Aurora, not disguising rates rises by having massive increases in debt each year."
If changes were not made, Dunedin stood to lose its financial sustainability, ability for development and provision for a "good range of social services".
In the past, "inexperienced" mayors had not been able to use the role positively.
"I’m giving people the opportunity to vote for me if they really want a big change, because if I get to be mayor, there will be a big change."
He contested the mayoralty in every local body election since 2004 when he was elected to the city council for the first time and had served six terms as city councillor.
He placed fourth from 11 candidates in the 2022 mayoral election.
"I’m a little bit tired of the business as usual ... vibe, that we run the council like it is a profit or a business."
Addressing the cost of living and the needs of Dunedin’s homeless community were priorities for her.
"I want a city that feels safe, welcoming, accessible and inclusive, where everybody can see ... that the city is lifting them up, particularly our children."
Dunedin had only had one female mayor and it was "high-time" a woman returned to the helm, she said.
Before she was elected councillor in 2022 she served for six years on the Waikouaiti Coast Community Board.
She has run for mayor twice and placed eighth from 11 candidates in the 2022 mayoral election.
Crs Vandervis and Mayhem both said they would also stand for city council as independents.
The election will be held on October 11.
