THE votes are still being counted to determine who will be named in the final 13 councillors, including a mayor and deputy mayor, to lead Lake Macquarie council.
Adam Shultz is the newly-elected mayor of Lake Macquarie and spent Sunday relaxing with his family while the results for other Hunter mayoral candidates hung in the balance.
The city is divided into three wards, North, East and West, and its 166,089 electors will decide which four councillors represent them in their ward.
While the official result is yet to be declared, the initial count shows the parties and candidates that are leading the pack.
East Ward
With just four of the 20 candidates standing in East Ward to take a seat on council, Labor has a strong lead with 41.26 per cent of the votes.
At this stage, Labor's Adam Shultz has secured the mayoral spot, leaving room for two fellow Labor candidates in Christine Buckley and Stacey Radcliffe who are likely to snag a seat.
The Liberals hold 24.21 per cent of the vote in East Ward, with Matthew Schultz, Melody Harding, Rod Chapman and Dianne Volker on the ticket.
Liberal candidate Matthew Schultz looks to be the third candidate to be elected to represent East Ward with a Lake Mac Independent candidate also likely to take the fourth spot.
East Ward stretches from Catherine Hill Bay in the south to Mount Hutton, Gateshead, Eleebana and Redhead in the north.
The ward also includes Belmont, Swansea, Valentine and parts of Warners Bay.
North Ward
There are 19 candidates standing in North Ward and Labor is dominating in the initial count, with 39.17 per cent of the votes or 11,953 first preference votes.
The Liberals are coming in second with 22.9 per cent of the vote, only slightly edging ahead of Lake Mac Independents (LMIND) led by incumbent councillor Colin Grigg at 22.83 per cent.
Leading the Liberal North Ward ticket is incumbent councillor Jack Antcliff, who is likely to return to his seat on council joined by LMIND candidate Cr Grigg.
Labor's North Ward candidates include incumbent councillors Brian Adamthwaite and Keara Conroy, as well as Mark Howells and Gaurav Vijay.
Labor is confident it will snag two seats in North Ward which could go to incumbents Cr Adamthwaite and Cr Conroy.
North Ward covers the areas closest to Newcastle, from Dudley and Kahibah to West Wallsend in the northwestern corner.
Charlestown, Cardiff, Glendale, Hillsborough, Macquarie Hills and Edgeworth, along with Speers Point and Boolaroo are also in North Ward.
West Ward
The votes are more evenly spread across West Ward, which is the largest ward with major centres in Morisset, Rathmines, Toronto and Bonnells Bay.
There is just a 2.7 per cent gap in first preference votes between Labor and Liberal candidates in West Ward.
Labor's incumbent deputy mayor Madeline Bishop is likely to secure a seat alongside incumbent Liberal candidate Jason Pauling and incumbent LMIND candidate Kate Warner.
A tug of war is likely for the fourth spot depending where preference votes flow but Labor is hopeful it can get incumbent councillor David Belcher up again.
West Ward has seen a fairly strong challenge from Our Local Community, Greens and Independent candidates and with Cooranbong pre-poll votes yet to be counted the fourth spot hangs in the balance.
It could be days before a result is declared.
Greens celebrate 'strongest ever result'
While the Greens fell short of a victory in North Ward, the party is celebrating its "strongest ever" result in Lake Macquarie.
At the close of counting on Saturday night it appeared the party was on track to win almost 15 per cent of the vote in North Ward.
Mayoral and North Ward candidate Bryce Ham said it was a "clear sign" that the Greens' movement for a "fairer, greener Lake Macquarie" was gaining momentum.
"We're now within striking distance of electing a Green onto Lake Macquarie council," he said.
"This is only the beginning of a movement that will keep growing stronger.
"The campaign might be over, but we've laid a strong foundation and I'm more determined than ever to continue pushing for the positive changes we need in Lake Macquarie.
"The future is bright."
The 2024 election marked the first time the Greens had contested the mayoral race since 2012, with Mr Ham coming in fourth place at 11 per cent, an increase on the 7 per cent of votes received more than a decade ago.
In Dudley, the Greens placed second above the Liberals for the first time ever in a Lake Macquarie booth, finishing with a more than 20 per cent vote share at seven booths including Charlestown, Kahibah and Whitebridge.
