With only one week until nominations close, Timaru District Council and Geraldine Licensing Trust still need candidates.

Six of the eight electoral issues still don’t have enough candidates nominated to fill the available positions.

As of Friday morning only the Mayoral and Pleasant Point-Temuka Ward elections have had enough people throw their hat into the ring, with other elections either having no nominations or not enough for the number of seats available.

Deputy Electoral Officer Stephen Doran said that minor errors in nomination forms can take a bit of time to correct, so it’s best not to leave things to the last minute.

“We need to have nominations confirmed by noon on Friday 1 August and if any last minute issues with the nomination, such as ineligible nominators crop up it can mean candidates may miss the deadline. We are especially keen for those intending to stand for community board and the Geraldine Licensing Trust positions to get their nomination documents in as soon as possible.

“Candidates can submit their nominations via email, or they can pop into the council building in Timaru and one of our helpful electoral staff can help get your nomination confirmed on the spot.

“Standing for your council is one of the most positive things you can do for your community, and electoral staff are there to make the process as straightforward as possible.

“If you’ve been thinking of standing, but aren’t sure where to start, the candidate information booklet provides valuable information about what’s involved in putting in your nomination as well as what comes next if you are elected.”

All the information you need on standing for election can be found at timaru.govt.nz/council/elections/stand

The current state of nominations as at 11.30 on Friday 25/7/25 is as follows:

• Mayor (2 nominations received for 1 position)
• Geraldine Ward (0 nominations received for 1 position)
• Pleasant Point – Temuka Ward (3 nominations received for 2 positions)
• Timaru Ward (4 nominations received for 6 positions)
• Geraldine Community Board (0 nominations received for 6 positions)
• Pleasant Point Community Board (1 nomination received for 5 positions)
• Temuka Community Board (2 nominations received for 5 positions)
• Geraldine Licensing Trust (0 nominations received for 6 positions)

A link to the list of current nominations can be found at timaru.govt.nz/elections