Clarence voters look past the tattoos and dreads

By Tim Howard

She owns a tattoo parlour in South Grafton, wears her hair in dreadlocks and in her first tilt at becoming a Clarence Valley Council is more than 1000 votes ahead of her nearest rival.

She is Cristie Yager and Clarence Valley voters have overwhelmingly chosen her appeal to community values and straight talking ahead of candidates who have taken a more mainstream approach.

There was no-one more shocked than Ms Yager when the first figures from Saturday’s count came out on Sunday, with 2845 first preference votes putting her on track to be the first councillor elected.

Needing a quota figure of around 4000 votes likely, Ms Yager was almost certain to achieve that figure on the first count.

“I don’t think I’ve absorbed it very well yet,” she said on Sunday. “But there’s time for that I suppose.”

Ms Yager revealed that she had become aware of a strong vein of female support for her and other women on the ballot paper, which might create some surprises when preferences were distributed.

“There was a lot of people who just went, ‘well, I’m gonna vote for you. I don’t really know who, who else,” Ms Yager said.

“So they just went, ‘I’m gonna vote for women’. There was a lot of that.”

While she was grateful for the support and understood the reason for it, she said she really would like to be a representative for all people.”

She said she had met many of the candidates during pre-polling and enjoyed the experience.

Ms Yager put her appeal to voters down to her independence.

“I decided I’d go independent, 100%,” she said. “I’m gonna do it my way.

“Not that I knew what I was doing, but I was gonna do it my way, and I was gonna stay independent.

“If I couldn’t work hard enough to get it, then I didn’t earn it. That was my stance.”

She said that as she’s rubbed shoulders with current councillors and candidates she’s learned a lot.

“It’s been, yeah, very eye opening to see how everyone’s sort of doing their bits and pieces behind the scenes, I suppose,” she said.

“So yeah, I’ve had to sort of tell a few people to sort of go, hey guys, do not bring me into this. I’m just going to be over here doing my thing.”

While the level of support was a surprise, Ms Yager revealed her campaign to get onto council had begun at the start of the year and employed a combination of tactics.

“It was sort of like a trifecta thing I was trying to go for,” she said.

“I sort of wanted to go cover the three angles I wanted to learn.

“So I wanted to go to every council meeting.

“Read business papers, you know, read the Code of Conduct, the Local Government Act, get the basics on those documents.

“I didn’t want to walk through the doors and go, I do not know what I’m doing, or have an idea, you know.’

Her second plan to use social media to create a presence in the community, but there was a catch.

“Trying to say anything on community groups was hard, because they sort of go, ‘Oh, she’s just trying to raise a profile on that.

“And I was, but I tried to make sure I was open about it while being, you know, genuine.

“It was a tricky, tricky balance.

The Yager team, family members and friends, bottom from left: Buddy, Molly and Bella. Middle Sophie, Cristie and Sophie’s boyfriend Chase and rear, Aaron holding Barrie and Violet. The family was celebrating on Saturday as the count put Cristie on target to being the first councillor elected on the new Clarence Valley Council.

The third part of her campaign was pure old-school community campaigning.

“Go and be a part of the community, contribute to different volunteering things, go to community events, all those, yeah, basically all those kind of things.

“Visit a pub for an afternoon lunch and just different areas.”

Ms Yager said the fact she was a fifth generation Clarence Valley person meant she had lots of contacts.

“We’re always in the bush, but in different spots,” she said.

“So I tried to sort of connect with them. And, yeah, understand their perspective in their areas.

“We’ve got, like, you know, beach communities, like, you know, full of beachy, cool people, but then, you know, out in the sticks, we’ve got, you know, the, you know, full bush hippies, but then also farmers. I mean, it’s such a variety, and it’s just so cool.”

Despite her independent approach Ms Yager said she was looking forward to the discipline of working in council.

“I’ve already found out I can’t put in a NOM (notice of motion) straight up, so that’s a shame,” she said.

“So I suppose I’ll just take my oath. I think I’m going to take a step at a time.”

But she said she she wanted to put the community first in council and would not be afraid to press those view when the time comes.

“I really want to be active about it and mainly just include, you know, our people, that’s sort of the point.

“I’ve kind of got some ideas, but I think I’d probably double check with everyone that matters.

“I’m going to be very involved with the community.”

Ms Yager said during her campaign and pre-poll a new idea had come to her to educate high school students about civic involvement.

“I’ve I actually have got a new goal, too, after hanging out with all the guys,” she said.

“I am going to be going and talking to high school students and telling them why this is so bloody important, and why they should be involved, and why they should care, and maybe try and make it exciting.

“You know, there’s just so many people who had no idea, or some who are just like, super keen.

“This is, first time I’ve actually taken an interest and I know what I’m doing. I’m informed, and I’m going to do it right.”

But she said it was not just young people who could benefit.

“I just sort of assumed it would be, you know, the younger generation that would be a little bit clueless with how to vote, but it was just throughout the ages.

“That just was really eye opening for me. So that’s sort of on my new, you know, to do list, something I’d love to do.”

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