She and Mayor Steve Toms were simultaneously offered an identical chance to write an article for next Tuesday’s opinion page in the paper.

Cr Toms has accepted but Cr Sparks said on Friday morning “no comment”. The phone then went dead.

On the Examiner’s Facebook page, though, her supporters are making her case.

Lili Sparks wrote: “Carol Sparks has worked and lived in Glen Innes and surrounding towns and has seen how she can help and didn't go into this lightly she takes her role as councillor very seriously.

“After years of working in the nursing sector as an RN and Midwife she has delivered babies and taken care of the oldies in Roseneath, she is a member of the Deepwater choir, always buys locally to support local businesses, her and her husband have had businesses in town for over 20 years and she has watched as her children and grandchildren grow up in Glen Innes and what it has to offer the next generation.

“Always helping her community she has over 10 years experience in the volunteer RFS and started a bus run for a local school and community. She has always put her hand up for census runs and any volunteer program she can. I feel that even if she wasn't a councillor she would still be concerned with the issues that young people in our town feel and would do everything in her power to make a change. There is no doubt in my mind that she is the woman for the job.”

And Dustyn Tonks wrote: “As a former resident of Glen Innes I always felt it had a lot to be desired, very little to give to the children and very little for its own future other than greed. I hope Carol can change this 50s mentality and help shape our future for your children, because I would dearly love to move back but it is not a place where I can see myself staying for any thing other than a short period of time, to be honest the town makes me feel ill with its backward redneck corruption and hypocrisy. Have a nice day.”

Sue Waters wrote: “Although Carol votes Green she has never pushed a Greens agenda on Council. Are the other Councillors defined by what Political Party they vote for?

“No-one even cares what party the others support - why is Carol Sparks treated differently? I have talked to her and find her to be a sensible woman with good ideas who cares about the problems facing Glen Innes. She cares about Youth, the fact that if you move to Glen Innes you cannot get registered with a Doctor. If you go to the Hospital on weekends you get treated by a stranger who has flown in for the weekend - at great expense. What's with all the scare mongering?”

Cr Sparks remains favourite to take over the mayor’s role at next Thursday’s meeting. There are no signs of cracks in the four to three majority she holds on the seven member body.

She would be the council’s first avowedly Green mayor, though other rural towns in New South Wales already have a Green leadership.

The procedure on Thursday is expected to be that Cr Toms will open the meeting and deal with formalities stemming from August’s meeting. He will then hand over to a neutral person to conduct the vote, and the winner would then take the mayor’s seat to conduct the remainder of the meeting.

There are important other items on the agenda, particularly where to put the wind farm blade.

On Monday, there’s a meeting of the council’s advisory committee on youth. One item on the agenda is how to react to the media. After last week’s initial meeting, divisions emerged on the proposed “youth hub”.