Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Audrey Young: National makes limited progress on new women candidates

Audrey Young
By Audrey Young
Senior Political Correspondent·NZ Herald·
7 Mar, 2023 04:00 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

National deputy leader Nicola Willis says the door is wide open for more women candidates. Photo / Mark Mitchell

National deputy leader Nicola Willis says the door is wide open for more women candidates. Photo / Mark Mitchell

National’s bid to increase the number of women is having mixed success as its selections for the election this year continue.

Of the 19 new candidates announced so far, seven of them, more than a third, are women.

But only a handful have a reasonable chance of being elected in electorate battles.

But deputy leader Nicola Willis says there is still room to improve on that number through more selections, special list-only candidates, and list rankings.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The new woman with the best prospect of being elected to National is Suze Redmayne who has been selected for Rangitikei. The seat has been held by retiring MP Ian McKelvie, with a current majority of 2961.

National's candidate for Rangitikei Suze Redmayne. Photo / Supplied
National's candidate for Rangitikei Suze Redmayne. Photo / Supplied

His majority has previously been over 10,000 but he held onto it when the party lost many regional seats in the so-called Covid election of 2020, and National was in chaos. Redmayne, aged 56, is a sheep farmer from Turakina, near Whanganui.

Another two women with a reasonable chance of winning in a swing away from the Government are from Hawke’s Bay.

National's Tukituki candidate Catherine Wedd. Photo / Supplied
National's Tukituki candidate Catherine Wedd. Photo / Supplied

Former television reporter Catherine Wedd is the candidate in Tukituki which Anna Lorck holds with a thin majority of 1590.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And Katie Nimon is the candidate in Napier which is held by Stuart Nash with a majority of 5856.

It is difficult to predict what effect the flooding emergency in Hawke’s Bay will have on sitting MPs. A disaster could often give an advantage to an incumbent especially if they are associated with a credible response by the Government - National benefitted in Christchurch immediately after the earthquakes.

National's Napier candidate Katie Nimon. Photo / Supplied
National's Napier candidate Katie Nimon. Photo / Supplied

But Nash’s role as Minister of Forestry could count against him, if he is perceived not to have done enough to force forestry companies to reduce the slash that exacerbated the devastation.

Four other women have been selected to be National candidates.

National's Remutaka candidate Emma Chatterton. Photo / Supplied
National's Remutaka candidate Emma Chatterton. Photo / Supplied

Emma Chatterton is standing against Prime Minister Chris Hipkins in Remutaka which he holds with a majority of 20,497 votes. She was the candidate who was abused and heckled as she addressed the climate change protest at Parliament last week.

National's Mana candidate Frances Hughes. Photo / Supplied
National's Mana candidate Frances Hughes. Photo / Supplied

Frances Hughes has been selected to stand in Mana which is held by new cabinet minister Barbara Edmonds with a majority of 16,244 votes.

Angee Nicholas is standing in Te Atatu against ex-minister Phil Twyford, who holds it with a majority of 10,508.

And Vanessa Weenink has been selected to stand in Banks Peninsula against Tracey McLellan who holds it with a majority of 13,156.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
National's Banks Peninsula candidate Vanessa Weenink. Photo / Supplied
National's Banks Peninsula candidate Vanessa Weenink. Photo / Supplied

Nicola Willis says she is confident there will be more women candidates selected among the 17 general selections still be held.

And she elevated the chances of Vanessa Weenink winning Banks Peninsula on the basis that National won the party vote there (as Port Hills) in 2017.

Willis also said that in Te Atatu, National had come close to doing better than Labour in the party vote in 2017.

“Angee Nicholas who is already on the ground working very hard in that electorate has certainly entered the race full of aspiration, and that is not to take away from Emma Chatterton or Frances Hughes who will obviously be campaigning hard in Remutaka and Mana.”

National's Te Atatu candidate Angee Nicholas. Photo / Supplied.
National's Te Atatu candidate Angee Nicholas. Photo / Supplied.

Willis said not only were more selections to be held but that up to five candidates could be selected as list-only candidates under party rules.

“That does leave some pretty big doors open for women,” she said.

And there was also the process of ranking the party list, which she and leader Christopher Luxon wanted to represent the New Zealand they wanted to see in Parliament.

Asked if she was disappointed that so few women had been selected, she said the party was making progress but there was more to make.

“I see this not as short-term project but as a medium-term project.”

It was not just about getting women for the 2023 election but for 2026 and beyond.

“The changes we are making in the party are at a grassroots, encouraging more women to come through our electorate organisations, encouraging more women to come through the candidate selection process, encouraging those women who haven’t been successful the first time not to count themselves out for the future, assuring we’ve got those support networks in place.”

The current National caucus of 34 has 11 women.

Besides Rangitikei, the other retiring National MP with an electorate seat is Jacqui Dean in Waitaki with a majority of 3281, and Miles Anderson has been selected as candidate to replace her.

The other selections so far in seats not held by National are:

- James Meager in Rangitata held by Jo Luxton with a majority of 4408.

- Hamish Campbell in Illam held by Sarah Pallet (3463).

- David McLeod in New Plymouth held by Glen Bennett (2555).

- Dan Bidois in Northcote held by Shanan Halbert (2534).

- Cameron Brewer in Upper Harbour held by Vanushi Walters (2392).

- Dale Stephens in Christchurch Central held by Duncan Webb (14,098).

- Tim Costley in Otaki held by Terisa Ngobi (2988).

- Ryan Hamilton in Hamilton East held by Jamie Strange (2973).

- Siva Kilari in Manurewa held by Arena Williams (17,179).

- Blair Cameron in Nelson held by Rachel Boyack (4525).

- Carl Bates in Whanganui held by Steph Lewis (8191).

Under National’s rules, if an electorate has 200 members or more, the selection process is run at a local and regional level. If it has fewer than 200, then the party board runs the process.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Work begins on key phase of port project

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

04 Jul 04:57 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

04 Jul 06:00 PM

'We want to take a very detailed specific look at what Whanganui needs' – Chris Bishop.

Work begins on key phase of port project

Work begins on key phase of port project

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

04 Jul 04:57 PM
Premium
Gardening: Pruning deciduous fruit trees and roses

Gardening: Pruning deciduous fruit trees and roses

04 Jul 04:00 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP