Mayor & councillors
Ballina Shire Council has 10 councillors: a Mayor elected directly by voters across the whole shire, plus three councillors for each of three wards — A, B and C. Below is who currently holds office, with links to their official profiles and the September 2024 election results.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- How the mayor is chosen
- Either elected directly by voters, or chosen by the councillors.
- Ward
- A subdivision of a council area that elects its own councillors.
- Local Government Area (LGA)
- The official area a council governs.
- NSW Electoral Commission (NSWEC)
- Runs council elections and publishes the official results.
- Mayor
- Sharon Cadwallader (Independent)Popularly elected Mayor (directly by voters, shire-wide); declared elected 1 October 2024.
- Deputy Mayor
- Cr Damian Loone (Sharon Cadwallader Team)A Ward; elected Deputy Mayor by councillors at the council's first meeting (October 2024), for a term to September 2026. The Deputy Mayor is chosen by the councillors, not by voters.
- Councillors
- 10 total — directly-elected Mayor + 9 ward councillors
- Wards
- A, B and C (3 councillors each)
Your representatives
Sharon Cadwallader
Mayor · Independent
Damian Loone
Deputy Mayor / Councillor · A Ward · Sharon Cadwallader Team
Erin Karsten
Councillor · A Ward · Greens
Phil Meehan
Councillor · A Ward · Independent
Michelle Bailey
Councillor · B Ward · Sharon Cadwallader Team
Kiri Dicker
Councillor · B Ward · Greens
Eva Ramsey
Councillor · B Ward · Independent
Simon Kinny
Councillor · C Ward · Sharon Cadwallader Team
Simon Chate
Councillor · C Ward · Greens
Therese Crollick
Councillor · C Ward · Independent
Want to raise something? Contacting your ward councillor or the mayor is one of the most direct ways to be heard between elections.
We list who's in office and link to their official profiles and the election results; we don't characterise anyone's politics. Party labels are those each councillor was elected under at the September 2024 election (NSW Electoral Commission) — 'Sharon Cadwallader Team' is the registered group name each of those councillors stood under. A council's makeup can change between elections through casual vacancies, so the council's official page has the most current list.
Sources — check it yourself
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.