The upcoming Cabonne Shire Council, along with local government elections statewide, have been postponed for a second time as the current COVID-19 outbreak continues to worsen.
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NSW Minister for Local Government Shelley Hancock on Saturday confirmed the election date had been pushed back from September 4 to December 4.
Council elections had already been postponed 12 months from September 2020..
As of Monday this week only five candidates had registered on the NSW Electoral Commission Public Register of candidates, current mayor Kevin Beatty, and councillors Peter Batten and Elizabeth Oldham along with new candidate Aaron Pearson.
Current councillors Greg Treavors, Jenny Weaver, Ian Davison, Paul Mullins and deputy mayor Jamie Jones have all indicated they are re-standing.
Independent advocacy organisation Local Government NSW has says if the elections are delayed beyond the new December date democracy will be put at risk.
"This latest three-month deferral comes on top of an existing deferral, with no guarantee further delays won't be incurred," LGNSW President Linda Scott said.
"Delaying elections further is a risk to democracy."
"Why should the rest of NSW have to suffer because of COVID cases in Sydney?"