Shakespeare asked ‘what’s in a name?’ and for Kevin Parker, he think it’s votes.
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He may be known as Kevin Parker but in the upcoming elections, Mr Parker will have to go by Alfred.
“Alfred and Kevin are both the same person. My grandfather was Alfred, my father was Alfred so I was Alfred, but my mum got sick of asking ‘how’s Alf going?’ and us not knowing who she was talking about,” Mr Parker said.
Despite wanting to have Kevin Parker on the ballot, because his name is Alfred Parker on the electoral roll it’s the name the South Ward candidate will have to go by. The candidate will have ‘Alfred (Kevin) Parker’ written on the ballot paper.
In the 2012 election the former councilor ran as Kevin. According to the NSW Electoral Commission the name printed on the ballot paper can be “any one of the candidate’s given names (as enrolled) or a commonly accepted variety of that name (including an abbreviation or truncation of that name)”.
“I think it will cost me a few votes. One lady who I know really well already called me and said ‘is it really you?’” Mr Parker said.
“I’ve been in Dubbo now for 27 year and everyone knows me as Kevin. No one’s ever called me Alfred. And then to make things worse someone’s gone and pinched two of my signs.”
The bank manger said two of his signs, which were hung on Victoria Street, had gone missing.
“I’m pretty disappointed they’re gone but I’m not fretting over it,” he said.
“Someone who admires me has probably knocked them off because I don’t think I’ve got too many enemies. If they want one come and ask me for one. After the election they can have one for nothing.”
If the thefts continued, Mr Parker said he was going to take the matter future and report it to the police.
The game was already hard enough, the council candidate said, but he was doing it for the community.
“I enjoy it. The hardest part is making decisions because there’s always going to be a winner and a loser, but I enjoy it and that’s why I’m going to run again now,” Mr Parker said.
The Dubbo Regional Council election is on September 9.