2025 Invercargill City Council election
The 2025 Invercargill City Council election was a local election held from 9 September to 11 October in Invercargill, New Zealand as part of that year's nation-wide local elections. Voters elected the mayor of Invercargill, 12 city councillors, and other local representatives for the 2025–2028 term of the Invercargill City Council. Postal voting and the first-past-the-post voting system were used.
Tom Campbell, councillor and deputy mayor since 2022, was elected to the mayoralty, replacing retiring mayor Nobby Clark.
Key dates
- 4 July 2025: Nominations for candidates opened
- 1 August 2025: Nominations for candidates closed at 12 pm
- 9 September 2025: Voting documents were posted and voting opened
- 11 October 2025: Voting closed at 12 pm and progress results were published later that day
- 11–12 October 2025: Preliminary results released
- 16–19 October 2025: Final results were declared.
Background
Positions up for election
Voters in the city elected the mayor of Invercargill, 12 city councillors at-large, the members of the Bluff Community Board, and the members of the Invercargill Licensing Trust. They also elected six members of Environment Southland.Campaign
Debates
A mayoral candidates debate hosted by broadcaster Duncan Garner was held at the Ascot Park Hotel. Candidates participating in the debate included Alex Crackett, Ian Pottinger, Ria Bond, Tom Campbell, Steve Chernishov, Tom Morton, and Andrew Clark. The debate covered a range of topics including boosting the local economy and infrastructure. Mayoral candidate Gordon McCrone was excluded by the organiser due to his connection to a controversial website.List of candidates
Incumbents not seeking re-election
- Nobby Clark, mayor since 2022
- Peter Kett, councillor
- Lesley Soper, councillor since 2016
Mayor
Withdrawn
- Lynley McKerrow, former Invercargill town crier, had announced her intention to run for the mayoralty in June. She withdrew her candidacy for mayor in July, citing not wanting to split the vote, and indicated she would instead just run as a councillor.