Willie Jackson with former Prime Minister Helen Clark and Parekura Horomia.
Willie Jackson with former Prime Minister Helen Clark and Parekura Horomia.
Whānau of Labour stalwart and former Māori Affairs Minister Parekura Horomia may consider standing as Labour candidates for the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat against MP Meka Whaitiri, who recently waka-jumped to Te Pāti Māori.
Political sources said Labour has a number of potential candidates who have shown interest in standing on the red-ticket seat against Whaitiri, including whānau of Horomia.
“Labour will not have a problem finding a very good candidate for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti,” a political source said.
“There’s been a number of people who have put up their hands, and it will be a tough choice for Labour to make.”
Horomia was the Minister of Māori Affairs between 2000 and 2008 as part of the Helen Clark government. He held the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat since its inception in 1999 until his death in 2013. Whaitiri, who was an adviser in Horomia’s office, won the byelection and had been a Labour MP and in Parliament until she announced her defection a fortnight ago.
Māori Development Minister Willie Jackson - the Labour Māori campaign chairman and co-chairman of Labour’s Maori caucus - said there was huge interest in potential candidates, but he would not name names.
Māori Development Minister Willie Jackson.
“This seat has been opened for nominations and we will know who has put their hand up at the end of the month,” Jackson told the Herald.
“And Labour members will find out first who will be the candidates for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti on offer, not the New Zealand Herald.”
The hunt for a new Labour candidate was triggered by Whaitiri’s defection to Te Pāti Māori.
She now sits as an independent MP, but will stand in Ikaroa-Rāwhiti for Te Pāti Māori.
Whaitiri won the 2020 election for Labour easily with 13,642 votes (55.6 per cent of the vote) over Heather Te Au Skipworth from Te Pāti Māori, who got 7,597 votes (30.9 per cent of the vote) and Green List MP Elizabeth Kerekere, who won 2,080 votes (8.5 per cent of the vote).
Skipworth was initially nominated again to stand for Te Pāti Māori, but agreed to stand aside for her cousin.
