In Harden, councillor of about 30 years - and mayor for 16 - Chris Manchester was beaten in a successful challenge for the top job by Councillor John Horton on Wednesday.

Councillor Manchester was defeated 4-2, with one of the seven councillors absent for the vote.

Cr Horton told The Daily Advertiser on Thursday of the "bittersweet feeling" of his victory - sweet because councillors had confidence in him for the role, but difficult due to Councillor Manchester's history.

Cr Horton - who has only been on council for two years - said he planned to learn as much as he could in coming months, including meetings with council staff, the chamber of commerce and the community.

Cr Manchester said he was disappointed at the result, given he had planned to make it his last term.

"It's a very critical time for local government and I felt I had a lot to contribute over the ensuing 12 months," Cr Manchester said.

"There will be significant changes, especially to small towns like Harden."

Councillor Neil Reid was elected deputy mayor unopposed and takes over from Councillor Matthew Stadtmiller.

At Murrumbidgee Shire, Phillip Wells was ousted by Councillor Austin Evans for mayor.

Councillor Wells, who had been mayor since 2004, will now fill the role of deputy.

Cr Evans said the response to the local government review was one of the biggest challenges in the next 12 to 18 months.

He praised his predecessor but said "with some of these challenges coming up, we need to have just a slightly different focus".

While the result was as predicted in Leeton, the mayoral team has vowed to do what's best for the shire in the coming year.

Councillor Paul Maytom was re-elected to the top job on Wednesday night, marking his 10th term as mayor, while Councillor George Weston also retained his position as deputy mayor.

Neither faced opposition during the vote.

Further west at Carrathool, Peter Laird and Darryl Jardine were re-elected mayor and deputy mayor respectively without opposition.

At Coolamon, John Seymour remains mayor and Bruce Hutcheon will continue as deputy after both were unopposed.

In nearby Temora, Rick Firman was re-elected unopposed for his third term as mayor and Graham Sinclair was returned as deputy.