A change to provisional results for the voting of the Hawke's Bay Regional Council has brought in a strong critic of the Ruataniwha dam project, which the council is promoting.
Tom Belford, a vocal opponent of the scheme, was behind sitting councillor Kevin Rose in the provisional results.
But in the final results released on Friday morning, he has beaten Mr Rose by 61 votes.
Tom Belford is a member of the Growers Action group, which now holds four seats on the council.
The group campaigned on the council's handling of irrigation restrictions during this year's drought. It has also criticised the lack of information on the $600 million Ruataniwha water storage and irrigation scheme.
