# South Gippsland Shire

The Shire of South Gippsland is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the south-eastern part of the state. It covers an area of 3,296 square kilometres (1,273 sq mi) and, in June 2018, had a population of 29,576.
It includes the towns of Leongatha, Korumburra, Foster, Poowong, Mirboo North and Meeniyan. It was formed in 1994 from the amalgamation of the former Shire of South Gippsland with the Shire of Mirboo, and parts of the Shire of Korumburra and Shire of Woorayl.
The Shire is governed and administered by the South Gippsland Shire Council; its seat of local government and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Leongatha, it also has a service centre located in Mirboo North. The Shire is named after the Gippsland region, in which the LGA occupies the southernmost portion, including Wilsons Promontory at the southern tip of the Australian continent.

## Council
### Current composition

The council is composed of three wards and nine councillors, with three councillors per ward elected to represent each ward. The entire council were sacked by the state government on 19 June 2019 due to bullying allegations and general dysfunctionality. The council was run by administrators until 2021 when a new council was elected.
| Ward | 2016 election | 2016 election | 2016 election | Council before dismissal | Council before dismissal | Council before dismissal | 2021 election | 2021 election | 2021 election |
| Ward | Councillor | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Councillor | Party |
| Ward | Coastal-Promontory | | Alysson Skinner | Independent | | Alysson Skinner | Independent | | Scott Rae | Independent |
| | Coastal-Promontory | Ray Argento | Independent | | Ray Argento | Independent | | Mohya Davies | Independent |
| | Coastal-Promontory | Jeremy Rich | Independent | | Matthew Sherry | United Australia | | Sarah Gilligan | Independent |
| Strzelecki | | Lorraine Brunt | Independent | | Frank Hirst | Independent | | Jenni Keerie | Independent |
| Strzelecki | | Andrew McEwen | Independent | | Andrew McEwen | Independent | | Mick Felton | Independent |
| Strzelecki | | Aaron Brown | Independent | | Aaron Brown | Independent | | Nathan Hersey | Ind. Liberal |
| Tarwin Valley | | Meg Edwards | Ind. Liberal | | Steve Finlay | Independent | | John Schelling | Independent |
| Tarwin Valley | | Don Hill | Independent | | Don Hill | Independent | | Clare Williams | Independent |
| Tarwin Valley | | Maxine Kiel | Independent | | Rosemary Cousin | Greens | | Adrian Darakai | Independent |

### Administration and governance

The council meets in the council chambers at the council headquarters in the Leongatha Municipal Offices, which is also the location of the council's administrative activities. It also provides customer services at both its administrative centre in Leongatha, and its service centre in Mirboo North.

## Election results
### 2021

2021 South Gippsland Shire Council election :
| Party | Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats |
| | Independent | Independent | 18,731 | 87.02 | 8 |
| | Greens | Greens | 1,518 | 7.05 | 0 |
| | Independent Liberal | Independent Liberal | 1,518 | 5.93 | 1 |
| Formal votes | Formal votes | Formal votes | 21,526 | 96.47 | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 788 | 3.53 | |
| Total | Total | Total | 22,314 | 100.0 | |
| Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | 27,376 | 81.51 | |

## Townships and localities

In the 2021 census, the shire had a population of 30,577, up from 28,703 in the 2016 census.
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Agnes | 57 | 61 |
| Allambee Reserve^ | 95 | 96 |
| Arawata | 79 | 92 |
| Baromi | 127 | 149 |
| Bena | 294 | 303 |
| Bennison | 43 | 42 |
| Berrys Creek | 152 | 174 |
| Binginwarri^ | 130 | 134 |
| Boolarong | 15 | 5 |
| Boorool | 51 | 54 |
| Buffalo | 272 | 284 |
| Darlimurla^ | 30 | 46 |
| Delburn^ | 32 | 37 |
| Dollar | 57 | 61 |
| Dumbalk | 413 | 455 |
| Dumbalk North | 95 | 90 |
| Fairbank | 41 | 52 |
| Fish Creek | 827 | 858 |
| Foster | 1,842 | 2,044 |
| Foster North | 165 | 152 |
| Gunyah | 4 | 0 |
| Hallston | 156 | 157 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Hazel Park | 41 | 55 |
| Hedley^ | 125 | 108 |
| Inverloch^ | 5,437 | 6,526 |
| Jeetho | 106 | 124 |
| Jumbunna | 127 | 150 |
| Kardella | 172 | 169 |
| Kardella South | 108 | 135 |
| Kongwak^ | 197 | 207 |
| Koonwarra | 404 | 366 |
| Koorooman | 105 | 115 |
| Korumburra | 4,469 | 4,749 |
| Korumburra South | 103 | 114 |
| Krowera^ | 108 | 134 |
| Lang Lang^ | 1,585 | 2,556 |
| Leongatha | 5,654 | 5,869 |
| Leongatha North | 138 | 141 |
| Leongatha South | 628 | 616 |
| Loch^ | 638 | 707 |
| Mardan | 210 | 248 |
| Meeniyan | 771 | 840 |
| Middle Tarwin | 95 | 91 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Mirboo^ | 290 | 334 |
| Mirboo North | 2,197 | 2,263 |
| Mount Best | 16 | 46 |
| Mount Eccles | 104 | 139 |
| Mount Eccles South | * | # |
| Moyarra | * | # |
| Nerrena | 248 | 238 |
| Nyora^ | 1,527 | 1,644 |
| Outtrim^ | 235 | 270 |
| Poowong | 643 | 717 |
| Poowong East^ | 82 | 88 |
| Poowong North^ | 186 | 202 |
| Port Franklin | 134 | 174 |
| Port Welshpool | 209 | 220 |
| Pound Creek^ | 104 | 126 |
| Ranceby | 71 | 83 |
| Ruby | 188 | 187 |
| Sandy Point | 270 | 312 |
| Stony Creek | 6 | 0 |
| Strzelecki^ | 89 | 107 |
| Tarwin | 56 | 59 |
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Tarwin Lower | 358 | 462 |
| Thorpdale South^ | 30 | 27 |
| Tidal River | * | # |
| Toora | 681 | 713 |
| Toora North | 103 | 107 |
| Trida^ | 62 | 87 |
| Turtons Creek | 30 | 33 |
| Venus Bay | 944 | 904 |
| Walkerville | 84 | 130 |
| Walkerville North | 5 | 5 |
| Walkerville South | 3 | 13 |
| Waratah Bay | 56 | 48 |
| Welshpool | 331 | 361 |
| Whitelaw | 29 | 30 |
| Wild Dog Valley | 62 | 78 |
| Wilsons Promontory | 13 | 16 |
| Wonga | 33 | 44 |
| Woorarra East | 40 | 43 |
| Woorarra West | 56 | 48 |
| Wooreen | 89 | 91 |
| Yanakie | 251 | 283 |
^ - Territory divided with another LGA * - Not noted in 2016 Census # - Not noted in 2021 Census