Douglas Shire Councillor 2016 – 2020

Becoming a councillor was one of the most exhilarating things I have accomplished, while also being one of the most difficult. Experience from my previous campaign assisted in the 2016 election, but I wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of bullying and unsavoury activity that occurred, part of which was the juvenile “any1buttkerr” campaign, which included memes, posters and even a website. A tough period of my life, it also gave me one of the greatest lessons in toughening up and a welcome to the rough and tumble of public life.

We all have different views, with not everyone agreeing, and admittedly finding balance has been challenging in my first term. I always said that if I was successful in my run for office my main goal was to be able to go home and sleep at night with a clear conscious. Sometimes that has been hard: living in a small town means decisions you make affect friends and people you know and care for. But I hope and believe that I have always had the best interests of everyone when making decisions and will continue to strive to do so.

Over the past four years, I’ve taken the opportunity to watch and learn how council works and of what is expected of councillors. This is an important part of the next step in my political journey. While in the future situations will arise that need to be handled differently to how I might prefer, I believe it’s important to continue good relationships with those who hold the majority view in our democratically elected Shire council.

I have immensely enjoyed my time as a councillor. Making the decision to run for mayor has been challenging as I know as a councillor I still have a lot to give to our community. I don’t want this journey to end, but the feeling of restraint given the way council currently stands is far worse. I cannot do the many things I believe are required for Douglas to grow and prosper unless I take this step. 

It is my hope that alongside similar-minded locals, we can join forces to bring Douglas Shire to a better place that everyone who lives here feels graciously proud of.

NEXT: Director on Connected Communities