2 weeks Ago By Glen Humphries
Seeing the Greens winning a councillor's spot in Wollongong's Ward 3 could be a breakthrough moment for the party's support in the city's south. Subscribe now for unlimited access . Login or signup to continue reading The Greens' Ward 3 candidate Deidre Stuart is on track to be elected a councillor in an area where the party tended to struggle to pick up votes.
In the Lord Mayoral election , Greens candidate Jess Whittaker only managed to win two booths south of Wollongong, while coming out on top in nine booths between Wollongong and Austinmer - she will serve as a councillor for Ward 1. "It's really hard for us in Ward 3," Ms Whittaker said. "It always has been for some reason.
I guess it's just very different demographics. I spent most of my life living in Bulli and then I moved down here about eight years ago and live in Port Kembla. "So it's vastly different landscapes.
" Ms Whittaker said campaigning in the south had always been hard for the Greens due to the lower level of support, but felt with Ms Stuart as a councillor people might see the value of the party. "There's the issue of having the resources - we've never really had a big number of volunteers who live in Ward 3," Ms Whittaker said. "Most of our really committed volunteers live in Ward 1, so that's a challenge campaigning in Ward 3, getting people to jump on board.
"But I'm hoping now with Deidre elected, and obviously I live down here, that we'll get more people to help us campaign for next time. "We'll keep building, that's going to be one of our goals to just keep building and organising down there." Ms Whittaker didn't feel it will be an issue representing Ward 1 in the city's north while living in Port Kembla.
"I'm really connected to Ward 1 having spent most of my life there," she said. "I wouldn't have run if I didn't feel like I knew the area really well and spent a lot of time there. "There was an opportunity to run.
Mithra [Cox] wasn't going to run again. We wanted someone to be in that safer seat that was going to do the work and keep building and turning up and have the time to commit to it. "So I took that opportunity.
" I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
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