Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has criticised former Hamilton West MP Gaurav Sharma ahead of the December by-election.
Speaking to reporters this afternoon, Ardern said Sharma, who resigned last month, had left behind a "tough race" for Labour candidate Georgie Dansey.
"We've come into it with a previous Labour MP who, in my view, has not served the community well," she said.
Sharma told 1News he "absolutely rejected" this accusation.
"I want my constituents to know all of the work I've done, often working my a*** off late at night."
Georgie Dansey, the chief executive of the Independent Schools Education Association and a small business owner, ran on the party list for Labour in 2020.
She made headlines just a day after her selection, with Stuff reporting that Dansey was spotted at yesterday's Tertiary Education Union protest that ambushed Health Minister Andrew Little at Waikato University.
Dansey later clarified the situation, writing on Facebook yesterday afternoon that she was there in her capacity "as an education sector union rep".
"I wasn't there to protest the minister and when it became clear the minister was being ambushed I left," she said.
Today, Ardern said the entire situation was a "significant misunderstanding".
"Georgie is a fantastic person, looking forward to the campaign and the work she'll do there."
The prime minister had a good laugh when asked for her response to National claiming to be the "underdog" heading into the by-election.
"I've got that to say," she said.
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