Advance Eurobodalla candidate Mathew Hatcher has emerged as the favourite for the mayoral race in Eurobodalla as voters await the results from a thrilling election.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mr Hatcher has claimed 24.2 per cent of the vote with his nearest challenger Rob Pollock, a member of the most recent council, on 19.6 per cent as of 12pm on December 7.
It's only in recent days candidates have pulled away from the field however with the informal voting rate unusually high in this election.
Eurobodalla has recorded 15 per cent of votes as informal so far in the council election, up from 7.95 in 2016.
Leading candidates have pointed the finger firmly at restrictions surrounding how-to-vote cards.
The NSW Electoral Commission prohibited the traditional distribution of how-to-vote cards at or within 100m of polling sites due to fears over COVID.
Mayoral candidate for The Mayne Team, Karyn Starmer said the decision had made predicting a result extremely difficult on election day.
"No one is actually feeling confident at this point because there are so many people turning up and not knowing who to vote for," she told the Bay Post from polling booths on Saturday.
"People who have done a lot of elections will tell you that you usually get a feel for it. You watch people as they take their how-to-vote cards but no one can gauge it."
Ms Starmer said while it suited Sydney polling stations, rural localities on the South Coast weren't suitable for the new distribution laws.
SPORTS NEW: KEEP UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LATEST PLAYS
"That works for a place like Sydney where you park 200 meters away but in a regional setting everyone parks at the front gate," she explained.
"In Narooma, it'd be the other side of the highway you'd be handing them out. It's basically made how-to-vote null and void for this election.
"Multiple groups made submissions to the NSW electoral commission to at least be able to leave them out for people to take but no. It's an issue they'll need to address moving forward I think.
"Particularly with the older generation, they are asking 'what do we do' and we say 'you can take a photograph' [of the how-to-vote card] but a lot don't have a phone with them so it's been quite an issue."
