Mr Suvaal has 42.81 per cent of the 37,778 primary votes that had been counted up to 2pm Tuesday, with just the remaining postal votes and the distribution of preferences to come.

Independent candidate Ian Olsen remains in second place with 27.12 per cent of the vote, followed by Liberal candidate John Moores (19.13 per cent) and The Greens' Janet Murray (10.94 per cent). Informal/other votes accounted for 3.52 per cent.

Mr Suvaal, who was a Ward B councillor last term, said he is looking forward to leading the new council.

"I want to give my heartfelt thanks to everyone in our community for the trust they have placed in me," he said.

"I am looking forward to working with all councillors to deliver positive outcomes for our LGA.

"Finally, a big thank you to my family. I wouldn't be able to do any of this without their support. They have been through the ups and downs of this campaign and will continue to be with me during the next term as mayor."

The final results won't be known until next week, but Ward A looks almost certainly to be made up of James Hawkins (Labor), Jessica Jurd (Independent) and Paul Dunn (Liberal).

Six-term independent Ian Olsen will be returned to Ward B, joined by Labor's Anthony Burke (who shifts from Ward D), while Liberal candidate John Moores gained an edge after the pre-poll votes were added to the election day count. Mr Moores is now 0.29 quota points ahead of Labor's Jeffrey Crebert, after leading by just 0.08 points last Tuesday.

Labor's Anne Sander will be elected to Ward C again, along with Liberal candidate Karen Jackson. Independent candidate Daniel Watton holds a slight lead in the race for the third seat in Ward C, 0.1 quota points ahead of Labor's Sophie Palmowski.

Labor appears to have secured two seats in Ward D - Rosa Grine and Mitchell Hill - with 49.83 per cent (or 1.99 quota points) of the vote. Liberal candidate Harry Slade's chances were boosted by the pre-poll vote. He is now 0.03 quota points in front of independent Paul Paynter, after trailing by 0.1 points last week.

Postal votes are due by 6pm Friday and the distribution of preferences will be conducted from Monday to Wednesday. Polls could be declared as late as December 23.