Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras members have elected four directors – three new and one returning – to the charity’s board, ending the election bids of several candidates aligned with both Protect Mardi Gras and Pride in Protest.
A total of 1627 votes were cast in this year's ballot, which filled four vacancies on the boards of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and its sister entity, Mardi Gras Arts.
Successful candidates were Pride in Protest's Luna Choo; Protect Mardi Gras' Kathy Pavlich; Savanna Peake, a Protect Mardi Gras candidate and Labor Party member; and Jarrod Lomas, a Liberal Party member and president of the Pride Business Association. While Lomas did not actively campaign as a Protect Mardi Gras candidate, the group nevertheless endorsed him because he supported its statement of principles.
On its Instagram profile, Pride in Protest revealed that Choo secured 528 primary votes, ahead of incumbent board co-chair and director Pavlich on 358, Peake on 293, and Lomas on 191.
They join continuing directors Daniel Mitsuru Delisle, a Labor Party member; Pride in Protest's Damien Nguyen; and board-appointed director Diana McManus.
The result means outgoing Protect Mardi Gras director Kyriakos Gold was unsuccessful in his attempt to retain his seat. Another Protect Mardi Gras-aligned candidate, Shane Sturgiss, also failed to win election.
Three Pride in Protest candidates – Alyss Cachia, Miles Carter and Carlos Badelles-Agito, also known as Tala Ka – were likewise unsuccessful.
Members cast their votes digitally through the Vero Voting platform ahead of Saturday's annual general meeting of the Mardi Gras membership, with remaining paper ballots submitted in person at Newtown's Inner West Pride Centre. The election formed the core decision-making component of the AGM, which is the organisation's main governance forum each year.
The newly elected directors fill three vacant seats left by departing directors Louis Hudson, Protect Mardi Gras' Kyriakos Gold and Pride in Protest's Luc Velez, while the fourth seat was contested and won by incumbent director Kathy Pavlich.
The four incoming directors will take their seats at a time when the organisation is preparing for the 2026 season and working through ongoing operational and financial pressures.
Editor’s note: Journalist Ben Grubb pays $50 annually for Mardi Gras memberships to access discounts at retail stores and bars but doesn’t use the membership’s voting rights.
Ben Grubb is the founder and editor of Gay Sydney News, an independent publication covering LGBTQIA+ news. A journalist with more than 15 years' experience, he has reported and edited for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAToday, Brisbane Times, The Australian Financial Review, News.com.au, ZDNet, TelecomTimes and iTnews, primarily on the topic of technology. He previously hosted The Informer, a queer current affairs program on Melbourne’s JOY 94.9 radio station, and contributes to LGBTQIA+ media including Stun Magazine. Ben has also appeared as a technology commentator on Channel Ten's The Project, ABC RN’s Download This Show and commercial radio stations 2UE, 2GB and 6PR. Contact Ben: [email protected]
