I have long argued that DCC staff should not be involved in any aspect of local elections, since some of them have clear conflicts of interest, especially the DCC CEO who is effectively hired by the Mayor and Councillors.

I believe the actions of DCC CEO Bidrose in the run-up to the 2019 election changed the Mayoralty result to the detriment of Dunedin.

Elections should be run by the Electoral Commission with staff independent of Dunedin and Dunedin Council bureaucracy.