Election 2023: Labour picks Whakatāne councillor Toni Boynton as candidate for Waiariki seat

Whakatāne district councillor Toni Boynton is running for a central government seat. Photo / Supplied

Six months after being elected unopposed as a Whakatāne district councillor, Toni Boynton is running for a central government seat.

Boynton is the Waiariki candidate for the Labour Party, it was announced by the party’s Māori caucus at the Tūhoe Te Hui Ahurei in Waimana over the weekend.

The seat is held by Māori Party candidate Rawiri Waititi, who beat Labour’s Tāmati Coffey in the 2020 election. Coffey is now a list MP, but has announced his retirement from politics at this year’s election.

Boynton, who has connections to Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Awa, Tamakaimoana, Te Arawa, Ngāti Kahu and Te Rarawa, was elected as the Kapu te Rangi Māori Ward councillor for Whakatāne in October after campaigning for several years in favour of Māori seats both locally and nationally.

She previously served as a member of the Tāneatua Community Board and represented Whakatāne on Te Maruata, Local Government New Zealand’s Māori sub-committee.

Boynton said the announcement followed a “couple of weeks” of discussions.

“I realise that, if I win at next year’s election it would, unfortunately, mean that there would have to be a byelection to replace me on council. Some people have said to me that, now I am a councillor, I should just concentrate on doing that.

“But while we have now achieved Māori ward seats on local councils, I feel that I have a responsibility to help ensure that we continue to have these in the future.”

“I know that, if I have to leave the council, there are people who can take my place and do a good job.”

Coffey entered Parliament in 2017 when he won the Waiariki electorate by fewer than 2000 votes, beating Te Pāti Māori’s Te Ururoa Flavell.

He lost the seat to Waititi in 2020 by 836 votes.

In announcing his retirement, Coffey told the Herald he hadn’t contemplated retirement until the birth of daughter Taitimu five weeks early on January 25.

Approaching the end of six weeks of “baby leave”, Coffey said the time away from the daily churn of politics had its impact.

Contemplating a departure after six years had been tough, he conceded, but his focus was now on supporting his whānau.