Pete Smith's campaign to become the next Division 10 councilor was launched at St Mary's By The Sea yesterday with would-be Mayor Bob Manning by his side.

Mr Smith joined Manning in his 'Unity 2012' team and will attempt to win the voting public over by the 28 April local government election.

At the launch Mr Manning said his team had questioned the merits of running a candidate in the Division currently held by the popular Julia Leu, but decided to lay a challenge after detecting "some level of dissatisfaction."

He said Mr Smith would not shy away from voicing the views of the electorate.

"You never have to wonder what he's thinking, he lets his views be known and he's not a shrinking violet," Mr Manning said.

On the issue of de-amalgamation, Mr Manning said he would prefer to work on the issues rather than jump into the separation process.

"I have talked to many people in Mossman, Port Douglas, and the Daintree and there is a great deal of dissatisfaction out there. It is no wonder they want to de-amalgamate from Cairns after the way they have been treated," he said.

"We will strive to make it (amalgamation) work and go the extra mile to make it work.

"If people still want to de-amalgamate we'll work to ensure it happens as smoothly as possible," Mr Manning said.

"From where I sit, as Mayor making amalgamation work will be a special project."

He added that Port Douglas should be promoted as a premier tourism destination, saying that Cairns was incomparable.

"There's nothing attractive about Cairns. Why people come to North Queensland is to see the rainforest and reef, and Port Douglas..."

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Mr Smith addressed a crowd of around 30 people at the launch who heard him say that he is keen to "bring the bling back" to Port Douglas, referring to the town's need to recapture its pristine image.

"What we've seen recently gets up my goat something fierce," he said.

"We've got to bring the shine back and give our shopkeepers some positivity.

"All the infighting back in the Douglas Shire Council days and all the Cairns Regional Council fighting is a bun fight. We'd nip that in the bud and work as a team," he said.

On the issue of the Port Douglas waterfront project, Mr Smith said a Bob Manning-lead council will "initiate an immediate and open review of this project to ensure that this development, the most significant public infrastructure to be ever constructed in Port Douglas, meets the aspirations of this community."

Mr Manning said that key employee positions within the Council had become "politicised" and highlighted the term of current Cairns Regional Council CEO, Lyn Russell, who is contracted for another two years beyond the upcoming election.