Labor’s Zeli Munjiza is expected to be formally declared Liverpool’s newest councillor on Tuesday, once preferences and exclusions are completed in the South Ward by-election.
The NSW Electoral Commission has not yet formally declared the result, but Munjiza holds a commanding first-preference lead and Liberal candidate Azam Dabbagh has conceded. Munjiza is now being treated publicly and procedurally as councillor-elect.
First-preference figures show Munjiza with 22,203 votes, or 38.05% of the formal vote. Dabbagh sits second with 12,638 votes, or 21.66%.
That gives Munjiza a lead of 9,565 votes heading into the preference count.
While the result now appears largely settled, tomorrow’s count will reveal how votes actually flowed, how many exhausted, and how much support the major parties truly commanded in Liverpool.
Major Parties Draw Limited First-Preference Support
Munjiza is strongly placed to win, but the wider story is the limited first-preference support for both major parties.
Labor led clearly, but still recorded less than 40% of the primary vote. The Liberal vote was just above 20%.
Together, Labor and Liberal attracted 59.71% of formal first preferences, leaving more than 40% of voters choosing independents, minor parties or other alternatives.
That is a substantial share of the vote sitting outside the major parties in a single-ward contest.
A Large Vote Outside the Two Major Parties
More than 23,000 first-preference votes were cast for candidates other than Munjiza and Dabbagh.
That included:
- Deb Gurung – 4,506
- Alanna Humphries – 4,457
- Michael Byrne – 3,162
- Jamil Azeem – 2,930
- Karress Rhodes – 2,189
- Jamal Daoud – 2,183
- Susie Kneipp – 1,971
- Michael Tierney – 1,600
- Edward Chave – 510.
Tomorrow’s preference distribution will show whether that vote was capable of consolidating behind any challenger, or whether it remained broad, scattered and likely to exhaust.
Preferences Still Matter
NSW local government elections use optional preferential voting, meaning voters do not have to number every box.
In a crowded field, many ballots may exhaust before reaching a final two-candidate contest.
That makes tomorrow’s count important, even if the political outcome appears settled.
It will show not only how Munjiza’s lead holds, but how much of the non-major-party vote flows through the count, and how much simply drops out.
What Happens Next
The NSW Electoral Commission is expected to complete exclusions and preference distributions before moving to a formal declaration on Tuesday.
Until then, the careful wording remains that Munjiza is expected to be declared elected, rather than formally elected.
The by-election fills a vacancy representing South Ward on Liverpool City Council.
Local Pulse will continue following the final count, declaration and the next steps for Munjiza’s swearing-in.
