Perth election results: Daniel Kingston edges out Ian Goodenough to become Joondalup’s youngest mayor

The City of Joondalup has officially entered a new era with Daniel Kingston elected as mayor, after defeating Ian Goodenough on preferences. He is only the city’s fifth mayor in its 27-year history and, at 32, is the youngest to hold the position. The 32-year-old was officially declared the winner by the Western Australian Electoral Commission on Monday afternoon, receiving 13,530 votes after preferences from a total of 33,701 eligible votes cast. He is succeeding Albert Jacob, who was Joondalup’s mayor from 2017 to 2025. Jacob did not run for re-election, retiring from local government to pursue a career in law. Seven candidates were in the running for the top job, including former Moore Liberal MP Ian Goodenough and longstanding Joondalup councillor Christine Hamilton-Prime. Goodenough won the first-preference vote, receiving 8266 to Kingston’s 7357, but Kingston overtook him after preferences were distributed. In this scenario, in all previous Joondalup elections, Goodenough would have been elected mayor under first-past-the-post rules; however, optional preferential voting was introduced by the State Government in early 2023 as part of reforms to local government elections. Mayor-elect Kingston has been a councillor for the city’s North Central Ward, which covers Ocean Reef, Iluka, Connolly, and Heathridge, since 2021. In his candidate profile, he said if elected mayor, he would aim to listen to all residents before making decisions and keep the local community informed. “As your Mayor, I’ll focus on fairer outcomes across every suburb. That means safer, greener streets with better lighting and underground power, conserving natural areas and investing in our parks, playgrounds and libraries,” he said. “It means supporting local clubs and small businesses, and more community events so Joondalup remains a place to live, work, raise a family and retire.” Speaking to The West, former Joondalup mayor Albert Jacob, wished his successor well and encouraged all councillors to stay connected to the community. “I congratulate all of the newly elected council, they are talented and diverse people who each have much to offer around the council table,” Mr Jacob said. “My advice is to stay close to our community — walk the streets, know the people, prioritise long-term impact and always work toward outcomes.” Kingston’s former fellow councillor, Christine Hamilton-Prime, who had served on the council for the past 16 years, received the third-highest number of first-preference votes with 5860. The distribution of Hamilton-Prime’s preferences ultimately helped Kingston overtake Goodenough to become mayor. In a post on social media, Hamilton-Prime said that, while disappointed by the outcome, she was incredibly proud of the campaign she ran. “Despite the negativity and personal attacks along the way, we chose to take the high road,” she said. “We rose above it, stayed focused, and got on with the job, putting forward a bold, positive and future-focused vision for Joondalup.” In the Joondalup councillor election results, Christopher May retained his Central Ward seat by just 65 votes over Suzanne Apps, Adrian Hill was re-elected as North Ward councillor after defeating two challengers, Russ Fishwick secured another term in the South Ward, extending his tenure on the council beyond 20 years, and John Chester was re-elected for South-East Ward. With Hamilton-Prime and Kingston not contesting their ward seats, the city will have two new faces on council. Matthew Count was elected to South-West Ward, succeeding Hamilton-Prime, and Denise Mercer was elected to North Central Ward, taking over from Kingston. The new mayor and council will be officially sworn in at the Joondalup Civic Centre on Wednesday, October 22, at 7pm.