Westland District Council Northern Ward councillor-elect Ian Hustwick announced today he was stepping aside.
Earlier, Grey District Council Central Ward former councillor Patrick McBride, who withdrew just before the election and too late to have his name struck off the ballot papers, said he would stand down after being elected regardless.
The Grey by-election will cost about $20,000 and Westland's $15,000, with ratepayers to foot the bill.
Mr Hustwick, who served on a previous Westland District Council, said today that during his induction he reluctantly realised his contribution to council business would be counter-productive to good governance.
"The central Government's political agenda and the resulting influence on local government operations are inconsistent with my personal beliefs. I would therefore find it impossible to make a genuine contribution without compromising those beliefs."
Electoral officer Anthony Morton said under the Local Electoral Act, when a member resigned from office more than 12 months before a triennial election, that vacancy must be filled by holding a by-election, not by offering the position to the next highest polling candidate.
Nominations for the two by-elections will be called from late November, with voting to be held in January.
In Greymouth, plans are already under way..
"Unfortunately, the election legislation only allows candidates to be withdrawn for extreme health reasons or if the candidate's eligibility is subsequently found to be incorrect. As neither of those criteria applied, Patrick had to remain as a candidate in this year's election," deputy electoral officer Tracy Pattison said.
The by-election process must be completed before February 17 due to rules around resignations immediately after an election, and a public notice calling for nominations will be placed soon.
If the seat is to be contested by more than one individual, voting papers would be mailed out to the Central Ward electors in mid-January to close in mid-February.
"Because it is legislation, and election rules, we have no influence or choice in the decision," Greymouth Mayor Tania Gibson said.
In Grey, the next-highest-polling candidate in the Central Ward was Harley Davison. In Westland's Northern Ward it was Jacquie Grant.
-By Meg Fulford and Janna Sherman
