Green Party candidates announced: Teanau Tuiono for Palmerston North; John Cockrem for Rangitīkei

Green List MP Teanau Tuiono is once again standing in the Palmerston North electorate.

The Green Party has again selected Teanau Tuiono as its candidate for the Palmerston North electorate, while first-time candidate John Cockrem will contest Rangitīkei.

A List MP since 2020 and a former Palmerston North mayoral candidate, Tuiono says he is stoked to be running once again for the Palmerston North seat.

“Hey Palmy, it’s me again. I’m looking forward to standing in Palmy in the October election,” he says.

“This election will be about climate and inequality, and we feel these things deeply here in Manawatū, as we do elsewhere across Aotearoa.”

He says it is a privilege to use his voice in the campaign “to support the diverse communities I am connected to in the electorate”.

“The Green Party has solutions to protect our climate, restore nature and end poverty in Aotearoa. This can only happen with more Green MPs in Parliament.”

Professor John Cockrem is standing for the Green Party in Rangitīkei in October's general election.

Cockrem will stand in Rangitīkei, a sprawling electorate that spans from Shannon to Taumarunui and takes in Fitzherbert, Summerhill, Feilding and Ashhurst.

He is a professor of comparative endocrinology at Massey University’s School of Veterinary Science.

He is delighted to bring his “experience and green values to a crucial election for our natural environment”.

“I am looking forward to meeting people throughout the electorate and hearing about local issues and concerns, then working to find ways to help with these issues.

“I will be asking Rangitīkei voters to give their party vote to the Greens, which will bring Green candidates into Government, and give a stronger voice to the Green vision.”

A big focus of Cockrem’s work is advocacy for the kororā [little penguin] and working alongside community groups, iwi, and Napier Port to protect them. For the past two years, he has been active in supporting residents and mana whenua on Waiheke Island in their opposition to a marina that is being built on a penguin colony.