Cabonne Council

Cabonne Council is a local government area in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire is located adjacent to the Mitchell Highway and the Broken Hill railway line, partly surrounding the City of Orange. The administrative centre is located at Molong.

Cabonne Council New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
The Cabonne Council chambers in Bank Street, Molong.
Coordinates	33°06′S 148°51′E
Population	13,386 (2016 census)[1] 13,680 (2018 est.)[2]
• Density	2.22137/km2 (5.7533/sq mi)
Established	1978
Area	6,026 km2 (2,326.7 sq mi)
Mayor	Kevin Beatty (Independent)
Council seat	Molong[3]
Region	Central West
State electorate(s)	Orange
Federal division(s)	Calare
Website	Cabonne Council
LGAs around Cabonne Council: Parkes Dubbo Dubbo Forbes Cabonne Council Orange Weddin Cowra Blayney

As at the 2016 census, the population of the Shire was estimated to be 13,860. More than half of the businesses in the region, being 858 of 1683, are classified as part of the agricultural sector.^[4]

The mayor of the Cabonne Council is Cr. Kevin Beatty, an independent politician.^[5]

Towns and localities

The towns and localities in the Cabonne Council area are:

• Boree
• Borenore
• Cadia
• Canowindra (shared with Cowra)
• Cargo
• Cudal
• Cumnock
• Eugowra (shared with Forbes)
• Manildra
• Molong
• Moorbel
• Mullion Creek
• Murga
• Nashdale
• Toogong
• Windera
• Yeoval

Demographics

Selected historical census data for Cabonne Shire local government area
Census year			2011[6]	2016
Population		Estimated residents on census night	12,821	13,386
		% of New South Wales population	0.19%	0.18%
		% of Australian population	0.06%	0.06%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		English	36.1%	35.8%
		Australian	31.8%	31.7%
		Irish	10.4%	9.5%
		Scottish	7.7%	7.6%
		German	2.8%	2.5%
Language		English only spoken at home	95.6%	91.3%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Catholic	30.3%	27.9%
		Anglican	30.1%	26.6%
		No Religion	13.1%	17.5%
		Uniting Church	9.5%	7.8%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income	$523	$631
		% of Australian median income	93.2%	95.0%
Family income		Median weekly family income	$1,293	$1,618
		% of Australian median income	87.5%	90.9%
Household income		Median weekly household income	$1,036	$1,301
		% of Australian median income	83.8%	87.6%

Council

Current composition and election method

Cabonne Shire Council is composed of nine councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is elected by the councillors at the first meeting of the council. The most recent election was held on 4 December 2021, and the makeup of the council is as follows:^[7]

Party		Councillors
	Independent	8
	Independent National	1
	Total	9

The current Council, elected in 2021, in order of election, is:^[7]

Councillor		Party	Notes
	Marlene Nash	Independent
	Kevin Beatty	Independent	Mayor[5]
	Jamie Jones	Independent National	Deputy Mayor[5]
	Andrew Pull	Unaligned
	Peter Batten	Independent
	Andrew Rawson	Independent
	Kathryn O'Ryan	Unaligned
	Jenny Weaver	Unaligned
	Libby Oldham	Independent

Election results

2024

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2024 New South Wales local elections in Central West § Cabonne results.[edit]

2024 New South Wales local elections: Cabonne^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Kevin Beatty (elected)	2,077	26.9	+3.2
	Independent National	Jamie Jones (elected)	826	10.7	+2.6
	Independent	Marlene Nash (elected)	778	10.1	−3.8
	Independent	Aaron Pearson (elected)	711	9.2	+4.4
	Independent	Peter Batten (elected)	707	9.2	+2.7
	Independent	Andrew Pull (elected)	598	7.8	−1.5
	Independent	Andrew Rawson (elected)	587	7.6	−0.6
	Independent	Kathryn O'Ryan (elected)	592	7.7	−0.7
	Independent	Jennifer Weaver (elected)	465	6.0	+2.8
	Independent	Guin Dickie	379	4.9
Total formal votes			7,720	90.7
Informal votes			796	9.3
Turnout			8,516	83.4

2021

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2021 New South Wales local elections in Central West § Cabonne.[edit]

2021 New South Wales local elections: Cabonne^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Kevin Beatty (elected)	1,859	23.7
	Independent	Marlene Nash (elected)	1,090	13.9
	Independent	Andrew Pull (elected)	726	9.3
	Independent	Kathryn O'Ryan (elected)	657	8.4
	Independent	Andrew Rawson (elected)	641	8.2
	Independent	Jamie Jones (elected)	638	8.1
	Independent	Peter Batten (elected)	511	6.5
	Independent	Libby Oldham (elected)	378	4.8
	Independent	Aaron Pearson	375	4.8
	Independent	Kevin Walker	293	3.7
	Independent	Jenny Weaver (elected)	250	3.2
	Independent	Paul Mullins	205	2.6
Total formal votes			7,836	92.7
Informal votes			618	7.3
Turnout			8,454	84.0

2017

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2017 New South Wales local elections § Cabonne.[edit]

2017 New South Wales local elections: Cabonne^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Kevin Beatty (elected)	919	12.2
	Independent	Peter Batten (elected)	867	11.5
	Independent	Kevin Walker (elected)	842	11.1
	Independent	Greg Treavors (elected)	705	9.3
	Independent	Marlene Nash (elected)	629	8.3
	Independent	Cheryl Newsom (elected)	624	8.1
	Independent	Jamie Jones (elected)	592	7.8
	Independent	Ian Davison (elected)	545	7.2
	Independent	Libby Oldham (elected)	411	5.4
	Independent	Anthony Durkin (elected)	396	5.2
	Independent	Jenny Waver (elected)	324	4.3
	Independent	Paul Mullins (elected)	301	4.0
	Independent	Duncan Brakell	226	3.0
	Independent	Derek Johnson	184	2.4
Total formal votes			7,555	89.88
Informal votes			851	10.12
Turnout			8,406	84.80

History

The first Australian gold rush occurred at Ophir within the present shire boundary.

Cabonne Shire was formed in 1978 following the amalgamation of Molong Shire, Boree Shire and the greater part of Canobolas Shire.^[11]

Proposed amalgamation

A 2015 review of local government boundaries recommended that the Cabonne Shire merge with the Orange City and Blayney Shire Councils to form a new council with an area of 7,833 square kilometres (3,024 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 63,000.^[12] As a result of the state government's decision to not proceed with proposed council amalgamations, this no longer applies.

Industry

The Manildra Group flour mill, one of the ten largest flour mills globally, is located within the shire at Manildra.^[13]