WDC councillor Vince Cocurullo lobbied to overturn the council's Māori seats decision in 2021. Photo / Michael Cunningham.
WDC councillor Vince Cocurullo lobbied to overturn the council's Māori seats decision in 2021. Photo / Michael Cunningham.
A local councillor and mayoral candidate has distanced himself from a political website that regularly attacked his opponents and listed him as the site's owner.
The councillor's registration of the website's domain name was bought into question in a video posted online by political commentator Paul Barlow.
Cocurullo appears to have used his own phone number, address and email to set up the domain for Democracy Northland.
Cocurullo said the domain registration for political group Democracy Northland once appeared under his name because of his role in the community as an IT specialist.
Democracy Northland has been running campaigns endorsing candidates, such as Vince Cocurullo, across Northland councils.
The group has also been running campaigns denouncing several standing candidates and current councillors.
Democracy Northland's website states; "The catalyst to our formation was the decision by the Northland Regional Council (NRC), the Whangarei District Council (WDC), and the Kaipara District Council (KDC) to introduce race-based wards without seeking the opinion of the wider community".
When the Advocate contacted Cocurullo, he denied being involved with Democracy Northland beyond registering the domain for the group in 2020.
"I was not the owner of the domain name or the website," said Cocurullo.
Cocurullo said he was aware Democracy Northland was endorsing him but he "hasn't seen the advertising" himself.
"As an IT person, I was asked to register the domain for them because they had no knowledge of it," Cocurullo said.
Cocurullo said he was asked by John Bain and Frank Newman to set up the Democracy Northland domain through his business, Cocurullo's Service Technicians.
Cocurullo said he registered the domain under his own phone number, address and email when he set it up because the pair provided him "none of that information."
"I've done this for 100 clients over the years and then when they give me the correct addresses, we put the correct addresses in and away it goes. It is pretty stock standard practice," Cocurullo said.
The domain name was registered in November 2020, according to Cocurullo, and said it remained under his name for two years before it was changed recently because he had "forgotten".
"I forward the invoices directly onto people, so it's not owned by me," Cocurullo said.
Cocurullo denied it was a conflict of interest that he set up the domain for a group that was endorsing him as a mayoral candidate.
"The fact that an individual or group can endorse any client or sorry, any person on the candidacy, is their choice."
Election services managing director and electoral officer Dale Ofsoske said "there are no alarm bells ringing" when it comes to Cocurullo's connections with Democracy Northland.
"He's quite clearly said he's not part of that group," Ofsoske said.
"It's just almost normal practice insofar as campaigning goes," Ofsoske said of the group's endorsement of Cocurullo.
In regards to Democracy Northland denouncing several candidates, Ofsoske said "one just has to be careful that nothing becomes slanderous or defamatory".
Cocurullo said it's not the first time there have been rumours his campaign has been connected with outside groups.
"I have said this to (Whangārei MP) Emily Henderson as well because she has accused me of having Voices for Freedom (VFF) endorse me. I have no connection with VFF.
"If Voices for Freedom endorsed me, that is their choice. I filled out a survey for them, that's all I can say," Cocurullo said.
Henderson confirmed she asked Cocurullo about his links to the political group.
"Several people raised concerns with me, so I asked because obviously, it would be a concern to have a councillor with affiliations to VFF," Henderson said.
"I completely accept Vince's assurance he has no membership. I am concerned that he said he doesn't disagree with some of their positions. As I have said to him, I'd like greater assurance from him about it and what he doesn't disagree with," Henderson said.
Northland Regional Council was forced into a by-election after John Bain, in blue jersey, resigned over Māori constituencies in 2020. Photo /Susan Botting
Bain said Cocurullo did not charge him for initially setting up the domain name, but Cocurullo had been forwarding him the annual invoices for the cost of keeping the domain, which the Advocate sighted.
"Vince has done some work for me on a number of things for phones and computers and stuff. He was the person that set (the domain) up in the easiest way possible when it was set up a long time ago," Bain said.
On whether Cocurullo appreciates Democracy Northland's endorsement, Bain said, "I hope he does but we haven't discussed it any length''.
"I sat on the DHB with him, he's been a very supportive guy," said Bain.
Bain said he's secured the website domain for the next two years and the group "will probably link up with like-minded organisations".
"We have a couple of very generous donors," Bain said, but he would not say who.
One of Democracy Northland's founding members is Robin Grieve, a Pākehā man opposed to Māori seats who is standing for Northland Regional Council's Māori ward.
Democracy Northland member Frank Newman is a former member of the WDC and married to former ACT party MP, Muriel Newman.
Cocurullo said his business does not offer domain name registrations anymore.
This story has been corrected from saying Democracy Northland is vehemently against Māori Wards. This was not accurate, they are against the way Māori Wards were introduced without seeking the opinion of the wider community. We apologise for this.
