Cr Barrera, who served as Mayor in 2023/24, formally submitted her resignation to the Chief Executive Officer this afternoon, Friday, 1 May 2026, according to a post on her Facebook page. The resignation comes on the same afternoon that the Local Government Minister announced who Wyndham’s municipal monitors would be, one month after former Minister Nick Staikos announced the intention to appoint.

In a pointed statement, Cr Barrera indicated that the current internal climate at the council has made it impossible to fulfil her councillor duties.

“The current environment makes it impossible to effectively represent the community’s interests,” Cr Barrera said. “The unprecedented situation Wyndham faces currently makes it impossible for me to remain.”

The resignation comes amid a period of intense scrutiny for the council. Dr Barrera specifically referenced the Local Government Amendment (Governance and Integrity) Act 2024, acknowledging state reforms aimed at improving councillor working environments, but suggested those measures were insufficient to address the localised crisis at Wyndham.

The statement offered a rare, candid look into the tension within the chambers, with Cr Barrera calling out the current Mayor, Preet Singh’s refusal to vacate the chair despite a unanimous vote of no confidence from fellow councillors.

“The current Mayor has refused to step down. I have asked him many times to do so,” she stated. “I cannot stand by and support the message that refusing to step down sends to young girls across the community.”

Cr Barrera’s departure marks the end of a five-and-a-half-year tenure on the council.

The resignation triggers a vacancy in the Heathdale Ward, which will likely require a by-election to fill.

Wyndham City Council has not yet issued a formal response regarding the resignation or the specific allegations regarding the Mayoral deadlock.