Tesi Naufahu kept it short and snappy when he asked voters to give him a place on the Albert-Eden Local Board (Owairaka Subdivision). Photo / Supplied via Reddit
Tesi Naufahu kept it short and snappy when he asked voters to give him a place on the Albert-Eden Local Board (Owairaka Subdivision). Photo / Supplied via Reddit
Cherie Howie looks back on the high, but mostly low lights of this year's local body election campaign.
It's been a bruising few years for democracy, here and abroad.
Anti-Government protesters have called for politicians to be lynched, occupying public spaces connected to democratic institutions, and the world has been rocked by Russia's ongoing attempt to violently topple the democratically elected government of its neighbour, Ukraine.
But still men and women raise their hands to serve their communities, towns and cities, most recently for yesterday's local body elections, albeit for some the campaign spotlight has proved a mixed blessing.
Brash and provocative, Auckland restaurateur Leo Molloy's run for mayor was always one tirade away from making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
That came in July when an interview with Guy Williams on satirical news show New Zealand Today went to air, with Molloy hitting out at people he deemed "woke" and claiming our biggest city had been hampered by a succession of "soft-****" mayors.
Viewers were treated to a full serving of Leo Molloy's boisterous personality during his interview on Guy Williams' satirical New Zealand Today show. Photo / THREE
Later, the pair donned oversized boxing gloves and stepped into the ring, where Molloy told Williams he'd agreed to the interview on the condition they spend 15 minutes "in the square office" at the end.
"When little woke, soft-***** like you turn up I get them in here and give them a hiding."
But the only hiding was in the polls - a bad one a month later saw Molloy yank the plug on his feisty campaign.
Ick
When Molloy's car crash interview went public, fellow Auckland mayoral candidate Wayne Brown urged his rival to quit and "reflect on his … behaviour".
"[The mayor of Auckland] should be a serious, dignified role", Brown told the Herald.
But Brown might've been wise to take some of his own advice late in the race when a hot mic captured him saying the first thing he'd do as mayor was glue pictures of a Herald journalist to urinals so people could "pee on him".
Wayne Brown, right, pictured during an NZ Herald debate with rival Auckland mayoralty candidate Efeso Collins, is not a fan of Herald journalist Simon Wilson, foreground. Photo / Alex Burton
Brown made the comment about Simon Wilson, whom he also called a "prick", during filming by Newshub, but demurred at apologising, telling Newshub Nation's Rebecca Wright he didn't realise he was being filmed when he made the comments.
"[I] didn't mean to do it in a way that would become public".
'Why not?'
If voting was for the most laidback elected official, Tesi Naufahu would be the winner.
Standing as an independent for the Albert-Eden Local Board (Owairaka subdivision), Naufahu's simple "Why not?" slogan lit the path for some big dreams, including making Owairaka the "top 2" mountain in Auckland.
"I want to transform the world", Naufahu wrote in his candidate profile statement, where he also listed his favourite things as "long walks on the beach", "getting in touch with my emotions", Taco Loco and the wave pools.
"If I were appointed, I would ensure that global warming is eradicated. I am passionate about this because in summer time, I overheat in bed and struggle to sleep.
Tesi Naufahu kept it short and snappy when he asked voters to give him a place on the Albert-Eden Local Board (Owairaka Subdivision). Photo / Supplied via Reddit
"Another problem I would like to solve is the structural integrity of paper straws at the movies. Every time I'm there, my straw gets super soggy halfway through the film. Vote me in to make my dreams come true."
Climate change and soggy straws aside, his first priority was something a little more straightforward.
"I will ensure that the vibez are ON."
Messy
It should've been a solid platform to build a mayoral campaign on, Viv Beck's longtime leadership of the city centre's business association Heart of the City.
But Beck's campaign never really got off the ground, with poll ratings falling to a fourth-placing 13 per cent by August, and a messy fallout over an alleged unpaid advertising bill later that month.
Viv Beck pulled out of the Auckland mayoral campaign, but not in time for her name to be removed from the ballot. Photo / Dean Purcell
The Auckland mayoral candidate and her campaign team found themselves embarrassingly locked out of their Facebook account and website after ad agency Hello Ltd claimed a $353,000 bill hadn't been paid.
Beck later claimed the bill wasn't in her name - but wouldn't say whose name it was in - and the saga sparked questions about her ability to manage a council budget of $7 billion a year when she couldn't manage her own campaign finances.
Also messy
It was a mess of a different kind when Ted Johnston spoke at the University of Auckland Debating Society mayoral debate in July, after eggs were hurled at the wannabe city boss.
Johnston had called an interrupting audience member "Team Efeso", not realising the person had a disability - understood to be Tourette's syndrome - prompting another person to dispatch two eggs his way in retribution.
Ted Johnston, left, reacts after a flying egg struck his shoulder during the a mayoral candidates' debate at the University of Auckland in July. Photo / Bernard Orsman
One hit Johnston's suit jacket, the other flew past his shoulder, but the former bouncer quickly brushed off the sticky strike.
"That sort of thing doesn't worry me."
A very modern problem
Months-long Covid-19 vaccination mandates for some professions fuelled anger that boosted membership of anti-vax groups, such as Voices for Freedom, and threatened workable governance.
As candidates for local body elections emerged fears were raised some had links to the high-profile disinformation group which had urged followers to make New Zealand ungovernable and whose co-founder encouraged candidates with links to the group to keep mum.
Others weren't connected to the group but held beliefs that included them among more than 170 local body candidates - about 5 per cent of those seeking office - anti-misinformation group FACT Aotearoa had concerns about.
Election candidates linked to anti-vaccination group Voices for Freedom, whose supporters are shown protesting in an unrelated photo last year, emerged around the country. File photo / Paul Taylor
One was Gill Booth, seeking election to the Teviot Valley Community Board in Central Otago.
Her platform included ensuring a referendum was held on Three Waters and "exposing" Local Government New Zealand which, she alleged to RNZ after some prodding, was imposing a United Nations-formulated agenda on councils.
She baulked at going into further detail on what exposing the organisation would entail.
"I wouldn't tell you that," she said, laughing.
"That's like telling you what I'm going to do three moves ahead in a chess game."
