Elections 2010

The winds of change could be about to sweep through the offices of the Dunedin City Council, with Mayor-elect Dave Cull convinced the community's demand for change led to his win on Saturday.

Voters have dumped three long-serving mayors in a day of sweeping change at the top in Southern local government.

From Mackenzie District Council receptionist to the district's new mayor - Claire Barlow is finding her new position "very exciting and quite surreal".

Former Mackenzie District Council receptionist Claire Barlow has become Mackenzie's first female mayor.

The Dunedin City Council has warned people awaiting the outcome of its election they will need to be patient, because results will not be available until some time this evening.

Dunedin student Niko Elsen might be fighting an uphill battle - trying to stimulate student interest in local government - but the third-year politics and design student has combined his talents to do just that.

For the first time in more than a decade, there is an increase in interest in voting for local authorities.

Dunedin voters have until noon on Saturday to decide who they want on their city council. We asked three Otago Daily Times readers what small projects the council should concentrate on as it avoids big projects to cut debt from its peak of $337 million next year.

Fewer Otago residents have indicated they plan to vote in this year's local body elections than any other region, a poll shows.

Waning interest in district health board elections may reflect a growing awareness DHB members are servants of the Government rather than the people, says University of Otago health policy specialist Associate Prof Robin Gauld.