Mr Edwards has nominated for the East Ward and said his speedy registration as a candidate was a matter of necessity.

When contacted by the Daily Liberal on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Edwards and his wife Lyn were at the international terminal of Sydney Airport, ready to fly out to Rome.

“We’ve had this trip booked for months so when I found out the dates, I just had to be ready with everything,” Mr Edwards said.

As well as his involvement with the Dubbo Show, Mr Edwards is a board member of Harness Racing NSW and the treasurer of Eumungerie RSL.

He is currently the chairman of HRNSW but that role will cease on December 2, as he reaches his maximum term of eight years on the board.

“With that coming to an end I thought I would have some spare time on my hands and I’ve always had a strong interest in the community,” he said.

“I think Dubbo is a great place but it has to keep moving forward and with my background I feel I can make a positive contribution.”

Mr Edwards said he felt Dubbo needed a “substantial ring road” to reduce the congestion within the city but said he saw the main role of council and councillors to set the city up for the future.

“I think if a city is a good place to live, the development will happen,” he said.

Mr Edwards was on a property at Eumungerie before retiring at the end of last year and moving into the city.

He also he felt it was important the new council gave Wellington and the small towns the support they required to continue to grow too.

He said he wouldn’t be back in Dubbo until the end of August, which meant he would miss out on some of the campaigning.

Former Dubbo mayor Greg Matthews and former Wellington mayor Anne Jones were the other early entrants. Mr Matthews was first official candidate for the Central Dubbo ward while Ms Jones will stand for Wellington.

Nominations will be accepted until 12pm on Wednesday, August 9, with a ballot draw to be conducted later that afternoon.