Jobs the issue for Westie hopefuls

Trying in evenly split Waitakere to unseat National's Paula Bennett are Labour's Carmel Sepuloni and Sue Bradford of Mana. Photo / Richard Robinson

It's shaping up to be the "battle of the bolshie chicks" in the Waitakere electorate - and none of the leading ladies are taking anything for granted at this stage.

National's Paula Bennett narrowly snatched the West Auckland electorate from Labour's Lynne Pillay at the last election.

There were just 632 votes between the two parties then and given the history of the electorate - which is fairly evenly spilt between the two main political parties - it's likely to be yet another close race this year.

Of the seven candidates standing in the Waitakere electorate, the real race is predicted to be between Ms Bennett and Labour's Carmel Sepuloni, although the Mana party's Sue Bradford does throw a slightly unknown factor into the mix.

All three candidates told the Herald they were expecting a close race and agreed that lack of jobs for those looking for work was a big issue for the area.

Act is not standing a candidate in the electorate this year, at the request of National, because the majority is too small. National hopes that those who would have voted Act - around 500 last time - will now give their votes to Ms Bennett instead.

The question is whether Ms Bradford, a well-known personality with a Green background who will undoubtedly be of interest to many green Westies, will take any of Ms Sepuloni's much-needed votes - even though she doesn't actually want them.

During a Meet the Candidates evening on Wednesday, Ms Bradford told voters she wasn't seeking their electoral vote, just their party vote. Green candidate Steve Tollestrup said the same thing.

Waitakere is a working-class electorate with around 49,000 people eligible to vote. So far, about 92 per cent are enrolled, including nearly 5000 who are under 25 and just over 3200 who are on the Maori Roll.

Voter turnout has traditionally been a bit lower than the national average so candidates say they'll be working to get everyone involved as every vote counts.

Ms Bradford has only just moved back into the area but used to live in Ranui and her children attended the local schools.

She believes poverty, a lack of housing and a lack of jobs are key issues for the electorate. Around 1200 people queuing for 40 jobs at the opening of a new supermarket in Glen Eden recently is an indicator of how desperate people are to find work, she says.

"I think the big issue in Waitakere is unemployment especially for young people, Maori, Pacific Islanders and the migrant community."

Labour's Carmel Sepuloni - who replaces the defeated Ms Pillay in the electorate - also believes poverty and "underemployment" are big issues.

She says the cost of living is an issue she repeatedly hears about from residents, many struggling to put food on the table and some senior citizens even turning off hot water and only showering every second day in order to save money.

Ms Bennett, who drives a leopard-print painted car with "Proud to be a Westie" across the side, agrees that jobs - or lack of them - is a key issue. She said the electorate has less industry than many other areas and when positions do come up, there are large numbers turning up in the hope of finding employment.

She also believes transport and education are big issues for Waitakere residents.

Ms Bennett describes the electorate and the candidates standing in it - herself included - as "feisty".

"I think it's feisty out here - people tell you what they think and the candidates kinda reflect that as well. When I'm being a bit cheeky I say the Auckland Central race seems reasonably polite and is the battle of the babes - this is probably the battle of the bolshie chicks ... we're more likely to call a spade a spade."