Mayoralty dark horse picks up speed on home straight

Colin Craig is reaching out to voters disillusioned with local politics. Photo / Dean Purcell

Running among the also-rans in what's become a two-horse race and with no political group to back him, mayoral hopeful Colin Craig is pressing the keyboard instead of the flesh.

The 42-year-old property manager says handshaking and door-knocking all of Auckland would be impossible.

So, because he is known mainly in business circles, he has been doing most of his campaigning from a computer in his waterfront office.

"Out on the street, half the people I would meet are not going to vote. And the new Auckland Council is enormous.

"Email is a bit dry but it is a way of getting hold of a lot of high-value voters - people who will give my name to their family and communities."

The Howick-born father of one - who has juggled his campaign with the management of $1.3 billion worth of property - has attended forums and debates to maintain a public face. But with few fulltime staff, he has had to limit his targets.

When he receives a supportive email, he telephones the person and tries to plant a seed of support within their community.

He also reaches out to people who are disillusioned with local politics. In his office, I read a few of his more positive emails, and the common theme is, "I don't usually vote, but I like your fresh ideas ..."

His decision to limit face-to-face contact is not due to a lack of people skills. The tall, goatee-bearded businessman is unfailingly polite, patient and attentive.

In an interview with a tiny Spanish-language radio station in Mangere this week, he waited, smiling, for half an hour as each of his long speeches was translated.

His polite manner and business acumen won his hosts over and the station managers promised to promote Mr Craig to their 3000 listeners. "This new city is like a business," said radio journalist Norma Henderson. "So I think he's got my vote".

His business sensibility has also made him popular among Asian communities.

In the words of a Korean resident who has lived in Auckland for five years, "Colin is self-made. He built himself up from scratch. With a new council, that's what we'll need ... everything will be from scratch."

It is highly unlikely that Mr Craig will win the mayoralty but he is popular with businesspeople and is reportedly receiving good support in his home territory on the North Shore. If these groups vote for him, it would dent John Banks' tally.

Exit polls released by Horizon Research this week gave him 11 per cent of the vote. He expects this to increase because he is timing his campaign run late. "It makes sense to promote yourself more heavily when people have the voting papers in their hands."

One of his glossy pamphlets shows a mocked-up picture of rivals John Banks, Len Brown and Andrew Williams waiting impatiently for a train. Mr Craig is looking for something more futuristic - light monorail - to solve the city's congestion problems.

It captures his approach to running the city - in an innovative and environmentally friendly way.

He is a moral conservative who is well known for bankrolling last year's March for Democracy on smacking. He says his faith is "part of who I am but not my policy".

"It can be a tough job being the dark horse. But I have already outpolled one mayor ... There may be more surprises to come."