MARGARET O'Rourke will seek a fifth-straight term as the City of Greater Bendigo's mayor in a race to be decided over the coming week.
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The councillor will tell colleagues her experience leading the council through the COVID-19 economic collapse - and the relationships she has forged with other government's leaders - makes her ideal for the top job.
"We have never had a year like my last term as mayor," Cr O'Rourke said, referring to the pressures sparked by the pandemic.
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"What we need is someone who can work closely with the community and business ... and who has those relationships with state and federal counterparts, as well as the wider region."
Cr O'Rourke will focus her pitch on the unprecedented challenges the city faces during the recovery, when many residents are still vulnerable and when the population is expected to keep rising.
She said it would be important for continuity that councillors consider her bid.
Cr O'Rourke thanked members of the public who had contacted her since election results were announced last week urging her to run, saying their support had been overwhelming.
Cr O'Rourke will vie for senior leadership roles against three other candidates, all of whom sat on the previous council.
Bendigo's nine-member council will officially select their new mayor at a ceremony on Thursday next week.
However, the actual decision is likely to be made behind closed doors before that date.
Bendigo's mayors and their deputies only serve for a year at a time, though Cr O'Rourke shattered that norm by leading the last council over four consecutive years.
She said the looming mayoral decision will strictly be about the council's needs over the next year and that she had not considered any more runs past that date.
Cr Metcalf last week said she would only serve as mayor for one year if elected, saying she would not be interested in doing it on an ongoing basis.
Cr O'Rourke said she would prefer mayors be elected for two years at a time to give its leadership continuity while balancing the significant demands the role can place on people's time.
However, that is not part of her pitch to councillors this time around.
Cr O'Rourke said that if she was not successful in her she would not consider a tilt at the deputy mayor position.
"I think it would only be fair that I stepped back if they were keen for someone new in the mayoral position," she said.
"A will always be happy to give my support to them. That is really important for continuity."