Yvonne Weldon is hoping to become the first Aboriginal mayor of the City of Sydney.
Ms Weldon, a Wiradjuri woman, is an independent councillor and the first Indigenous councillor in the City of Sydney's 180-year history.
"Local government has an impact on our everyday life," she told NITV.
"There's so much about local government where we can make a difference for each other.
"It's the basics but it's an important part of making a difference for tomorrow, whether it's where you play your footy or whether it's actually making sure that we have more social and affordable housing so that people can live in our city.
"That's that's why it's important, it touches everybody, and we need to make it better."
Ms Weldon, born and raised in inner Sydney, maintains strong ties to her Wiradjuri homelands of Cowra and the Riverina areas of NSW.
She has held senior positions in government, non-government and Aboriginal controlled organisations working across health, human services, child protection and housing and is a board member of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, deputy chair of the NSW Australia Day Council and a voluntary board member of Domestic Violence NSW.
If elected as mayor, Ms Weldon said she will work with state government to create more affordable housing, including homes for workers and people trying to escape domestic violence.
"There's so much about domestic violence that people don't realise that we need to address, including around women and children who don't have safe places to go," she said.
"It's a passion piece of mine because once you start to put real supports in place – and housing is a part of that – you can change cycles, you can change people's lives and rather than being from heartache, we can start to really do it in a supportive, positive way."
In 2022 Yvonne was recognised as the NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year and appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for her service to the Aboriginal community.
That same year she also published her first novel, Sixty-Seven Days, a story about love, family and culture.
Ms Weldon also wants to accelerate the transition to a green economy, address issues in waste management and champion local artists and businesses.
"I’ll establish a rates rebate for households and businesses who install solar or switch to green power," she said.
“I’ll invest in community infrastructure, cut red tape for creative and cultural endeavours, and incentivise mixed-use development and design excellence.
“Oxford Street is in a sad state, as are other parts of the city.
"Our nightlife is in retreat, our arts institutions are suffering and we’re losing too many creatives and young people."
While on council, Ms Weldon has successfully advocated for affordable housing, accessible streets, community and domestic violence supports, greater representation of First Nations culture, transparent decision-making and public information access.
"I'm actually a person who wants to make sure that the people are represented in a meaningful way and that people are heard," she said.
"And what I have seen is that there have been so many excuses of why we can't do things, but when you continue to push forward like I have, you can get change.
"I'm ready, and the time is right, and I'm running to be Sydney's first Aboriginal mayor.
"We can achieve so much more when all of us are represented in all of the places and I think it's time for the First Peoples of this country to be leading the way.
It's about making that change for a better tomorrow and for all of us together.
If elected, Ms Weldon has pledged to drop the 'Lord' from the mayoral title.
Local government elections will be held across NSW on Saturday, September 14.
The Lord Mayor of Sydney is popularly elected and the position has been held since 2004 by independent Clover Moore, who is running again and who defeated Ms Weldon in her first campaign in 2021.
