NSW local government elections were held on Saturday, December 4, with the Electoral Commission reporting there were 26,696 enrolled voters in the Bega Valley.

By the time counting stopped on Saturday night, around 35 per cent of ballots had been counted (9294), with a 9.71 per cent informal rate.

By Wednesday afternoon, that figure had grown to 19,496 votes counted, with the informal rate dropping to 8.18 per cent.

There were 18 candidates standing for election in the Bega Valley, with nine seats available.

According to the Commission, the running quota (the number of votes needed to secure victory) was 1791 as at 3pm Wednesday, December 8, but this changes as the first preference counts continue.

Although the count is nowhere near complete, looking certain to be elected are Labor's Helen O'Neil, previous mayor Russell Fitzpatrick, newcomer Karen Wright and another former mayor and returning councillor Tony Allen.

With 2821 votes so far, Ms O'Neil has claimed more than 15 per cent of first preference votes in the first year the Labor Party has run candidates in the Bega Valley.

Fitzpatrick (2389), Allen (2308) and Wright (2119) have all made the quota as it stands so far.

Not far behind and a good chance of being elected is Greens candidate and returning councillor Cathy Griff (1667). She will also benefit from the flow of preferences from the other four Greens standing in her group.

The remaining four seats on the Bega Valley Shire Council will likely be determined via preferences as they will not reach the quota on first counts.

The NSW Electoral Commission says all final count results will be reported in the third week after election day.

It might look as though there's an appetite for a popularly elected mayor for the Bega Valley in coming elections, with two-thirds of voters ticking 'Yes' in the referendum question.

But given that relates to only 127 votes counted so far, we'd suggest it's too early to call!