Party time: In the market for more votes

By JULIE MIDDLETON

Markets are dangerous places for campaigning pollies. Such uncontrolled face-time leaves them open to abuse from bystanders as well as requiring cruel and inhumane amounts of baby-shaking and hand-kissing.

But such marketing is unavoidable. And judging by the chat floating between shoppers at yesterday's Takapuna market, people were less interested in what Prime Minister Helen Clark stood for than in the fact that she stood smaller than expected.

"Smaller than she appears on TV," said one skateboarding teenager, surprised eyebrows disappearing into trendy haircut.

"She looks nice," said a 20-something woman, as the Clark caravan swept past. "Maybe I will vote for her."

Such are the grounds on which hearts are mined.

Clark, her progress through the packed market marked by three red balloons on a stick held aloft by a supporter, ignored the Greens' stall, and veered quickly away when she got too close to the GE-Free Rodney stall, its main exhibit that troublesome Nicky Hager book.

Selective deafness dealt with the beanie-wearing stallholder nearby who shouted, "What about the GE, Helen? Was there or wasn't there?"



"There's no corn in our bull," smirked a flower-seller, playing to the crowd as the cavalcade passed.

Milford property developer Philip Walley was curious to see Clark in person, but sharing her airspace was unlikely to budge him from National and Act.

"I genuinely admire the leadership she's given, but I fear the Muldoon in her," he said.

A policeman stood himself as widely as possible across a stall selling daggers and knives as Clark passed.

He wasn't the only anxious one; officer F172 - his first name was Peter - was keeping an eye out for stroppy Tuhoe activist Tame Iti.

He possibly didn't know that one of the country's most-photographed moko is number four on the Mana Maori Movement list.

Later, Iti - his trademark locks trimmed to stubble - appeared next to the officer.

"You don't have to watch me," he snapped. "I don't care about this kind of bullshit. I'm straight up. I just came to the market."



Peeling away, he couldn't resist a parting shot: "I never sold public assets to overseas investors!"

One who got more than the standard nano-second with Clark was Birkenhead woman Alexandra Hendrie , mum to three school-age children.

She asked the PM about school-age immigrants with limited English, and pronounced herself "impressed" with the answer.

Ms Hendrie knows about the impact of fleeting public impressions.

During the last campaign, her sons were walking home from school when their attention was attracted by a campaigning National candidate with a loudhailer.

They stopped to listen - and were mortified when the man behind it turned to them and chortled: "You don't count, you're too young to vote!" Humiliated, the pair rushed home and told their mother, "Don't you ever dare vote National". And so far, she hasn't.

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