Auckland mayoral candidate Efeso Collins tests positive for Covid-19

Auckland Mayoral candidate Efeso Collins has tested positive for Covid-19.

In a tweet on Monday, the South Auckland councillor said he started sneezing and coughing on Sunday before taking a RAT test yesterday.

"Feel privileged that I'm fully vaccinated/boosted and appreciate all the work of our committed health workers," he wrote.

Collins got his first taste of local government when he was elected to and became the chair of the Otara Papatoetoe Local Board. He has gone on to serve two terms as a Manukau ward councillor for Auckland Council.

Before he got into politics, Collins was already a leader among his peers after being voted the first Polynesian to become Auckland University Students' Association president in the late 1990s.

On Tuesday, he said he received a follow-up call from health workers at The Fono Health.

"Our health professionals are phenomenal and again just want to say thank u for all you're doing. Malo faafetai," he wrote.

During the country's battle with Covid-19, The Fono has provided help to some of Auckland's most vulnerable communities.

In February, the Labour Party announced it is endorsing Collins' independent campaign for the mayoralty of Auckland.

Collins confirmed in January he was planning on running for mayor. At the time he said he would run with or without Labour's endorsement.