Ajay Mishra leads Bendigo council race as preferences to be counted
Ajay Mishra leads Bendigo's Lockwood council byelection with more than a quarter of first-preference votes, but preferences will determine the winner since no candidate reached 50 per cent.
Bendigo's Lockwood council byelection has no outright winner yet. Ajay Mishra, who works in IT and health, leads with more than a quarter of first-preference votes.
David Thorpe is second with 21.76 per cent, followed by Greens candidate Robert Holian, a local GP, with 16.46 per cent. Marong resident Emily Edgar, who gained prominence after the suburb lost its compressed natural gas supply, took 14.74 per cent.
Preference counting begins today, Wednesday, October 14. Mishra ran in the previous Lockwood byelection and has recently lobbied for better bus services in the fast-growing suburb of Marong.
A joke candidate named Grant Lockwood, who campaigned as pro-Sauron (the villain from Lord of the Rings), received 6.71 per cent of the vote.
Why it mattersWhen no candidate wins 50 per cent outright, preferences determine the outcome, and lower-ranked votes can swing the result in an unexpected direction.
AustraliaThis is a local Victorian council seat. The winner will represent Lockwood residents on Bendigo City Council and influence local decisions on transport, development, and services.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 5 h ago
Open this story in InSnip →
