language, the fights — it's disgusting. A blight on our city." These comments were considered to have displayed a lack of empathy and later became the subject of a guerilla artist installation in the city. In March 2020, Zempilas conducted a television interview with former West Coast Eagles captain Ben Cousins, whose highly publicised post-football life was characterised by struggles with drug addiction and various run-ins with the law. The interview, which was broadcast by Channel 7 amid much publicity, was widely condemned. Veteran journalist Caroline Wilson described Zempilas as "beyond grubby" and "beyond demeaning" for his line of questioning of Cousins. Zempilas and Channel 7 defended the broadcast against accusations that it was exploitative of Cousins and the revelation that Cousins was paid for the interview. Zempilas was criticised in 2020 for using his media presence to promote himself as a candidate during the Perth mayoral election campaign. After Zempilas revealed plans to rally a team of like-minded council hopefuls, including his cousin Gary Mitchell, for the City of Perth, he was accused by rival candidate Mark Gibson of "stacking" the council with friends and family to snatch a voting majority. Zempilas was also criticized for announcing a plan to raise council rates for landlords with vacant retail space; the Property Council of Perth responded by saying rent increases for struggling owners were "poor policy" and "hardly an incentive." Following his appointment as Lord Mayor of Perth, Zempilas has been criticised for having a "very strong conflict of interest" with his ongoing media commitments. In October 2020, less than two weeks after being sworn in as Lord Mayor of Perth, Zempilas made comments on his radio show that some considered transphobic. He said "If you've got a penis mate, you're a bloke. If you've got a vagina, you're a woman. Game over." The comments were widely denounced, and Zempilas apologised the next day. A subsequent online petition called upon West Australian Premier Mark McGowan to sack Zempilas; the petition received 11,500 signatures. In the wake of Zempilas' controversial comments, the electronics retailer Retravision withdrew its advertising from 6PR, the radio station Zempilas was affiliated with at the time, and a public protest against Zempilas was held in Perth. Zempilas was also confronted by Perth LGBTQ groups during his first council meeting as Lord Mayor. A joint open letter from TransFolk of WA and Pride WA stated, Zempilas' comments also