
Declared: 3 week election suspense finally ends
GYMPIE'S new council is set in stone with the five outstanding seats declared by the Electoral Commission Queensland in the past two days.
Shane Waldock (Division 3), Bruce Devereaux (Division 4), Dan Stewart (Division 5) and Warren Polley (Division 7) were declared winners on Wednesday afternoon.
MORE ELECTION NEWS
* 'Token woman' for Gympie deputy does not make council PC
* Former councillor delivers gracious exit, farewell message
Jess Milne's victory was declared yesterday following a recount of the seat in the morning.
The Electoral Commission's second look confirmed Ms Milne's election over incumbent Mark McDonald by a 0.5 per cent margin after preferences.

New mayor Glen Hartwig, Dolly Jensen (Division 2), Hilary Smerdon (Division 6) and Bob Fredman (Divison 8) were declared winners on Monday.

Hilary Smerdon emerged as the biggest two-candidate vote winner among those elected.
Mr Smerdon secured 56 per cent of Division 6's primary vote, more than 30 per cent more than in 2016.
This ballooned to 68 per cent support after preferences.

Mr Fredman claimed Division 8 with 64 per cent of the vote after preferences, and Dolly Jensen claimed 60 per cent support in Division 2, where there were no preferences as a result of it being a two candidate race.
Mr Hartwig also nabbed 60 per cent of the after-preferences vote, giving him a 20 per cent lead over Mick Curran for Gympie's mayoral seat.

Almost two-thirds of Tim Jerome's preferences went to Mr Hartwig.
Elsewhere, preferences gave Bruce Devereaux a 17 per cent win over Rae Gate in Division 4, Dan Stewart a 13 per cent win over Chelle Dobson in Division 5 and Shane Waldock a 10 per cent win over Colleen Miller in Division 3.

The fight for Division 7 ended with Warren Polley .6 per cent ahead of Bob Leitch. Plans are still in the works for the new to council to hold its first meeting next Thursday.