Labour's Anna Lorck (left) and National's Catherine Wedd are vying for the Tukituki electorate.
On the eve of Saturday’s general election, Hawke’s Bay Today spoke to the region’s leading candidates about their campaigns and how they rate their chances heading into the weekend.
TUKITUKI
Incumbent Tukituki Labour MP Anna Lorck is facing strong competition from National’s Catherine Wedd in a contest which will “go down to the wire”.
The pair are no strangers, and formerly worked together at a PR firm in Havelock North.
Lorck is a one-term MP and, by winning the seat in 2020, became the first Labour MP to win that electorate since Labour’s Rick Barker in 2002.
Lorck said she was happy with her campaign, which included the Government recently pledging between $700 million and $1.1 billion for a new Hawke’s Bay hospital if Labour is re-elected.
“Every waking hour I’m spending my time out earning votes across the electorate and the feedback I’m getting is voters recognise how hard I’ve worked over the last three years, and they want me to continue relentlessly to push for our region like I have in getting $1 billion for building a new Hawke’s Bay Hospital.”
She said her commitment was “to keep working hard and get more done for health, housing and record investment to grow good jobs”.
“My work goes well beyond campaign cycles, and over the years, I’ve held more than 2000 street corner meetings across every suburb and community to ensure I’m available to listen to constituents and hear from them.”
She said the Tukituki race was close and “will go down to the wire”, and “turnout on election day will be big”.
Wedd, a former journalist and mother of four, said she has connected with thousands of people across Tukituki during a “really positive, highly energised” campaign which began in January.
“I’ve been knocking on thousands of doors and ensuring I have been as accessible and visible as possible so I can advocate for the people of Tukituki as their next National MP,” she said.
“I have an incredible team and huge support here in Tukituki as so many people are driven to change the Government and get Tukituki back on track, so a National government can strengthen the economy, restore law and order and ensure we have better education and healthcare.”
She said advocating for communities impacted by the cyclone had also been a big part of her campaign, and she felt “optimistic and positive” heading into the election.
“Whatever the result that is delivered on Saturday, I feel proud that I have worked incredibly hard with my amazing family and team to get our country and region back on track.”
NAPIER
While outgoing Napier Labour MP Stuart Nash took down signage from his long-term office on Thursday, Labour’s Mark Hutchinson and National’s Katie Nimon were out in the community making a final push to take his place.
Neither candidate has been elected to Parliament before.
Nimon ran unsuccessfully against Nash in 2020 while Hutchinson is making his first tilt at the seat.
Nimon said her campaign had been “full of energy and full of people”, with “lots of new connections made”.
“I have driven nearly 26,000 kilometres since January, which is when I really kicked into it with the campaign.
“It has been a really different campaign for the fact that the cyclone has meant that I almost went into MP mode from February.”
She said she felt positive about Saturday, but “I’m a superstitious person so I never count my chickens before they hatch”.
“I feel positive about the mood for change, but we just won’t know until after 7pm.”
Hutchinson said having entered the contest relatively late “up against a well-funded National campaign with a candidate who’s been in the running for years”, he knew he needed a great campaign.
“Fortunately, the Labour Party is a movement of committed people and I’ve had a very active team of volunteers who have made a massive effort.
“I’ve held over 80 street corner meetings, and alongside that, we’ve knocked on over 4000 doors and made thousands of phone calls,” he said.
“[People] want an independent thinker with the skills and experience to stand up for Napier who will actually get things done, no matter which party is in Government. That’s what I would offer.”
He said Napier had one of the highest early vote turnouts. “We’re gaining momentum now, but this will come down to the wire, both here in Napier and nationally.”
IKAROA-RĀWHITI
The race for the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat has attracted enormous interest since incumbent MP Meka Whaitiri crossed the floor in May, ditching the Labour Party to join Te Pāti Māori.
Whaitiri is the longest-serving MP running for any seat in Hawke’s Bay, having held the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat since a by-election in 2013.
Her biggest competition is coming from Labour candidate Cushla Tangaere-Manuel, a former East Coast Rugby CEO.
The Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat (on the Maori roll) covers a huge area of the East Coast from Gisborne down to Hutt Valley and has only been won by Labour candidates since it was established in 1999.
Whaitiri said her campaign had been “excellent” and “one of the [most] energised” she had been a part of.
“This is my fourth general election, and the energy in the approach is completely different from what I have been accustomed to - it is uplifting and positive.”
She said a lot of people had been involved from young children and mokopunas right through to kaumātuas.
“That’s just probably a reflection of our Maori voters and what they see in Te Pāti Māori.
She said it was going to be a close result.
“We are going to keep campaigning right to the bitter end because it is going to be such a close race.”
Tangaere-Manuel said “I think the campaign has gone better than I could have anticipated”.
“As everyone knows, I have only been in this for [not] quite three months, but I stood because I was asked to, and I was asked to because people trust me and we have a lot to do,” she said.
“I think I have traversed Ikaroa-Rāwhiti at least four times in that time. I have just got back to my own home in Rangitukia, where I have not been in three weeks straight.”
She said she had no Plan B in terms of the election result.
“Once I commit to something I am all in ... I am here for the betterment of our people and have demonstrated that by being with them this whole time.
“Once I committed to this, at the request of the people, all I have focused on is becoming their MP.”
WAIRARAPA
While neither frontrunner for the Wairarapa electorate lives in Central Hawke’s Bay, both men believe they’ve addressed important issues for the region.
Geographically, the Wairarapa electorate covers a huge area, including a large portion of Central Hawke’s Bay such as Waipawa, Waipukurau, Takapau, Pōrangahau and surrounding areas.
Incumbent Labour MP Kieran McAnulty’s main competition for the seat is National candidate Mike Butterick.
McAnulty said he was “really happy” with how the campaign has gone.
“I am the only candidate to focus on Central Hawke’s Bay. All the other candidates drive up to Central Hawke’s Bay and talk about Wairarapa, and I think that just demonstrates what I have been saying the whole way.
“Before I became MP, Central Hawke’s Bay was completely ignored and overlooked ... I promised I would change that and I have.”
He said he was “definitely a chance” on Saturday.
“It would be arrogant of me to say I am definitely going to win, but I think I have put my best foot forward,” he said.
“No MP has delivered more for Central Hawke’s Bay in recent memory than I have, and no MP in recent memory has been there as much as I have.”
Butterick said the campaign had been busy, and the “most humbling experience” was the number of people that had helped.
“We’ve engaged with as many people as possible and the mood is certainly that we need a change. I have enjoyed meeting voters and listening to their concerns and ideas,” he said.
“We’ve deliberately kept our messaging positive and talked about ... our solutions to fix what needs fixing - the economy, providing tax relief to those that are doing it really tough, restoring law and order, and getting our health and education sectors functioning as best as possible.”
He said, in terms of the result on Saturday, he expected it to be close.
”Ultimately the decision will be [the voters] and I’m confident that the mood for change will endure, while not taking anything for granted.”
