Analysis: Future political hopefuls would be forgiven if the 2023 election campaign puts them off politics for good, writes Jessica Mutch McKay.
This election campaign has hardly bathed the world of politics in glory.
There have been personal attacks, vandalism, police complaints, heckling, gate crashing and fake moustaches.
This matters because people will be looking at what’s happening in politics right now and thinking, “There’s no way I’d sign up for that.”
Parliament is meant to be 120 people from all walks of life, including our best and brightest. We need to make sure politics is a functioning space where people feel like they can make a difference.
Political leaders have a responsibility to control the narrative and dampen some of the vitriol we’ve been seeing of late. They set the tone and set the standard.
Politics is, of course, tribal but there’s a line and leaders should not be hyping up supporters to attack other parties. Have fun and joke, sure, but keep it respectful.
When you are listening to speeches, you can see the sway and the power politicians have over the room. People in the crowd take their lead.
I’ve seen how this applies to the media at these events. If the leaders go on about “fake news”, the crowds will heckle and sneer at the attending journalists. If leaders admit they want the media there to cover what they are saying, the crowd is respectful too.
When casting an eye over how the election campaign has unfolded so far, it has seemed particularly hostile in parts.
Over the weekend, Te Pāti Māori said one of its candidates had her home broken into in what it said was a “politically motivated attack”.
National MP Chris Bishop then said “malevolent actors” were trying to disrupt his party’s election campaign.
If you sign up to be a political candidate, you expect a certain amount of scrutiny. But you should never have to feel unsafe or feel like your home or your family are being threatened.
Industry leaders certainly don’t come into politics for the money, so it needs to be seen as an attractive career option.
Prospective MPs are signing up for an act of service to their communities. It’s important that a murky, bad-tempered campaign doesn’t put people off from this vital role.
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