Invercargill Mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt has had four deputies in five years, but Cr Clark said his decision to resign had nothing to do with his relationship with Sir Tim.
The decision was not taken lightly and it had been on his mind in recent weeks, Cr Clark said.
He finishes in the role next Friday.
“I struggle to do that leadership role when I have some issues advocating for ratepayers. I want to be free to focus on that for the next six months before the election.”
In his first term on the council, Cr Clark became known for his vocal and loud style.
He was involved in heated debates at council meetings and had a public falling-out with Sir Tim while an independent review said he was polarising.
Sir Tim said yesterday he was surprised by Cr Clark’s resignation.
"I did not see this coming. The problem seems to be frustrations with the current council which I also shared."
Sir Tim said he did not know who would fill the deputy role.
"I will be making some phone calls over the weekend and hopefully ... next week, I will have some news."
Cr Clark wanted to better advocate for ratepayers on important issues facing the council, he said.
The issues included a controversial recycling contract, the new museum, the council’s expenditure and the proposed 7.78% rate increase.
“I know there is a risk, but after thinking about it for several days now, I think I need to be a voice for ratepayers and to be free enough in the role of councillors to do that.”
During a council meeting yesterday, Cr Ian Pottinger raised concerns about elected members potentially “contaminating” the annual plan consultation process with their personal views.
His comments were made after Cr Clark told the Otago Daily Times earlier this week that the council should explore alternative ways to cope with its increasing costs rather than "unfairly" throwing the burden on to ratepayers.
Cr Clark had earlier confirmed he would not be standing for council in this year’s election and admitted he had thought about resigning several times.
“I’ve been pretty quiet on ratepayers’ advocacy issues but I just feel it is not appropriate for me to be quiet any more, so I’m gonna be a little bit more noisy around some issues from now on.”
