# Rural City of Ararat

The Rural City of Ararat is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of 4,211 square kilometres (1,626 sq mi) and in the 2021 had a population of 11,880.
It includes the towns of Ararat, Armstrong, Dunneworthy, Lake Bolac, Moyston, Pomonal, Streatham, Tatyoon, Wickliffe and Willaura. It was formed in 1994 from the amalgamation of the City of Ararat, Shire of Ararat and parts of the Shire of Mortlake and Shire of Stawell.
The Rural City is governed and administered by the Ararat Rural City Council; its seat of local government and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Ararat. The Rural City is named after the main urban settlement located in the north of the LGA, that is Ararat, which is also the LGA's most populous urban centre with a population of 8,076.

## Traditional owners

The traditional owners of this are the Djab Wurrung.

## Council
### Current composition

The council is composed of seven councillors elected to represent an unsubdivided municipality. Composition as of September 2022:
| Ward | Councillor | Notes |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Gwenda Allgood | |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Jo Armstrong | Mayor |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Peter Beales | |
| Unsubdivided | Cr William Waterston | |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Bob Sanders | Deputy Mayor |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Henry Burridge | |
| Unsubdivided | Cr Rob Armstrong |

### Administration and governance

The Ararat Rural City Council meets on the third Tuesday of each month at 6pm in the Council Chamber at the Ararat Shire Hall, 239 Barkly Street, Ararat. The Ararat Municipal Offices, 59 Vincent Street, Ararat, is the location of the council's administrative activities. It also provides customer services at this location and is open from 8.15am to 5.15pm on week days.

## Election results
### 2024

2024 Victorian local elections: Ararat :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent National | Jo Armstrong (elected 1) | 1,757 | 26.51 | −11.98 |
| | Independent | Teli Kaur (elected 3) | 743 | 11.21 | |
| | Independent | Bob Sanders (elected 2) | 688 | 10.38 | +0.22 |
| | Independent | Luke Matthew Preston (elected 5) | 663 | 10.00 | |
| | Independent | Peter Joyce (elected 4) | 592 | 8.93 | |
| | Independent | Amanda Mead | 497 | 7.50 | |
| | Independent | Bill Waterston (elected 6) | 486 | 7.33 | −4.65 |
| | Independent | Rob Armstrong (elected 7) | 343 | 5.18 | +1.08 |
| | Independent | Daryl Scherger | 286 | 4.32 | |
| | Independent | Osman Kokcu | 258 | 3.89 | |
| | Independent | Peter Beales | 180 | 2.72 | −1.69 |
| | Victorian Socialists | Fiona Tipping | 134 | 2.02 | |
| Total formal votes | Total formal votes | Total formal votes | 6,627 | 95.22 | +0.68 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 333 | 4.78 | −0.68 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,960 | 83.54 | −0.26 |

### 2020

2020 Victorian local elections: Ararat :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent National | Jo Armstrong (elected 1) | 2,770 | 38.49 |
| | Independent | William Waterston (elected 3) | 862 | 11.98 |
| | Independent | Bob Sanders (elected 4) | 731 | 10.16 |
| | Independent | Gwenda Allgood (elected 6) | 538 | 7.48 |
| | Independent | Henry Burridge (elected 5) | 537 | 7.46 |
| | Independent | Neil Manning | 351 | 4.88 |
| | Independent | Peter Beales (elected 2) | 317 | 4.41 |
| | Independent | Rob Armstrong (elected 7) | 295 | 4.10 |
| | Independent | Jane Goninon | 284 | 3.95 |
| | Independent | Colin McKenzie | 212 | 2.95 |
| | Independent | Bernardine Atkinson | 165 | 2.29 |
| | Independent | Cecilia Fresle | 134 | 1.86 |
| Total formal votes | Total formal votes | Total formal votes | 7,196 | 95.90 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 308 | 4.10 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,504 | 83.80 |

## Townships and localities

The 2021 census, the rural city had a population of 11,880 up from 11,600 in the 2016 census
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Ararat | 8,297 | 8,500 |
| Armstrong | 88 | 90 |
| Ballyrogan | 67 | 77 |
| Bayindeen | 21 | 22 |
| Black Range^ | 189 | 274 |
| Bornes Hill | 30 | 33 |
| Buangor^ | 103 | 112 |
| Carranballac^ | 42 | 43 |
| Cathcart | 91 | 110 |
| Chatsworth^ | 44 | 49 |
| Crowlands^ | 89 | 72 |
| Denicull Creek | 27 | 19 |
| Dobie | 42 | 33 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Dunkeld^ | 678 | 688 |
| Dunneworthy^ | 19 | 15 |
| Elmhurst^ | 183 | 185 |
| Eversley^ | 10 | 14 |
| Glenlogie^ | 33 | 29 |
| Glenthompson^ | 232 | 256 |
| Great Western^ | 400 | 425 |
| Halls Gap^ | 430 | 495 |
| Lake Bolac | 330 | 368 |
| Langi Logan | 25 | 23 |
| Mafeking | 19 | 20 |
| Maroona | 110 | 80 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Middle Creek^ | 19 | 22 |
| Mininera | 62 | 51 |
| Mount Cole | 21 | 21 |
| Mount Cole Creek | 5 | 10 |
| Moyston | 348 | 403 |
| Narrapumelap South | 30 | 31 |
| Nerrin Nerrin^ | 38 | 48 |
| Norval | 38 | 40 |
| Pomonal^ | 322 | 356 |
| Pura Pura^ | 37 | 47 |
| Rhymney | 60 | 56 |
| Rocky Point | 0 | 4 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Rossbridge | 32 | 27 |
| Stavely | 37 | 47 |
| Stoneleigh^ | 45 | 45 |
| Streatham^ | 156 | 158 |
| Tatyoon | 130 | 130 |
| Warrak | 66 | 68 |
| Westmere | 40 | 62 |
| Wickliffe | 113 | 123 |
| Willaura | 530 | 439 |
| Willaura North | 30 | 33 |
| Woorndoo^ | 169 | 160 |
| Yalla-Y-Poora | 16 | 13 |
^ - Territory divided with another LGA