Indira Stewart looks at what last night's election result means for Pasifika representation in government.
The 2023 election has resulted in a “huge loss” for the Pacific community, significantly reducing the number of Pacific MPs in government, one Labour MP says.
Last night’s bloodbath for the left means some of the most experienced and influential Pacific politicians are no longer in government, including Deputy Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni and Cabinet Minister Barbara Edmonds - who both held their electorate seats and will now sit on the opposition benches.
National will bring just one Pacific MP into government due to a surprising upset in the West Auckland Te Atatū electorate, a previously traditional safe Labour seat.
Angee Nicholas, a 29-year-old of Cook Island descent, pipped one of Labour’s most experienced MPs, Phil Twyford, flipping the Te Atatū seat by 30 votes in the election’s tightest electoral race.
With special votes yet to be counted, that result could change. The seat had been comfortably held by Twyford since 2011.
Both National’s candidates in Māngere and Kelston failed to win their seats. Due to National’s big win of electorates last night they, alongside list candidate Agnes Loheni, failed to get in on the party vote.
Loheni was National’s first Pacific female MP with a brief stint in opposition in 2019-2020.
Voting participation numbers in South and South-East Auckland, traditionally Labour strongholds, was noticeably lower than both the 2020 and 2017 elections, sending a clear message to the Labour Party.
Returning to Parliament, but this time in opposition seats, are six Pacific MPs. Former Auckland Councillor Efeso Collins, a Green MP, will enter Parliament for the first time, adding a seventh Pacific voice to the opposition bench.
Papakura candidate Anahila Kanongata’a-Suisuiki, the head of Labour’s Pacific caucus and known as a vibrant voice in the Tongan community, is also out of Parliament after failing to win the seat and having a lower list ranking.
Labour’s Neru Leavasa lost his Takanini seat to National’s Rima Nahkle.
After flipping Ōtaki red in the 2020 election, Terisa Ngobi has lost the seat to National’s Tim Costley.
Both Poto Williams and long-time Māngere MP ‘Aupito Williams Sio bowed out of politics this year and did not contest the 2023 elections.
'It’s a miracle'
“I can’t believe it, it’s a miracle and I just cannot believe it,” said National’s Nicholas.
“I was on my feet all night because I was so excited. I just saw the faces of my teams, the volunteers, friends and family and we were so happy.”
Nicholas, who is a lawyer and former National staffer, has been campaigning since December last year.
She said it’s now a waiting game to see if she stays on top when special votes come in.
“We just don’t know until those special votes come through but we’re remaining positive because this is a moment for us as a team to celebrate.
“My hopes for being an MP is that I will fight on behalf of Pacific voices but also every New Zealander across the country.”
Loheni, meanwhile, said she and her supporters were “elated”, saying, “We put everything out there and we gave it our best”.
“For us, it’s about being a voice for our community but ultimately, for me, we just want to lift education for our kids which is a critical part of closing the poverty gap and ensuring that they have a better future.
“But this is for all children in this country.”
An emotional night for the left
At 6.30pm while preparing to leave her West Auckland home, Sepuloni said she was both anxious and excited for the night ahead.
“There’s a lot at stake for our Pacific community, in terms of what National, ACT and NZ First have to offer or don’t have to offer for our Pacific community,” she said.
“I’ve experienced wins and losses throughout my career and every election is different.
“For me, it’s about acknowledging all the volunteers who have done all the hard work on the ground engaging with our communities.
“Our Pacific community are not one homogenous group, there are some people with different views. I’ve always been a big supporter of representation of every group that is out there, including our Pacific people but I would say that Labour has had the best representation of Pacific people.”
Sepuloni, who has retained her Kelston electorate, spent most of the evening at Labour’s West Auckland headquarters in Avondale, thanking her team of supporters.
“I’m very proud of my efforts in Kelston and as a minister and I want to be able to continue to do that work.”
'A huge loss for Pacific people overall'
There was a mix of emotions at Labour’s Panmure-Ōtāhuhu headquarters with both gasps and cheers from supporters throughout the night as they watched live coverage of the results.
Jenny Salesa retained her Panmure-Ōtāhuhu seat and acknowledged the several Pacific MPs in the outgoing government that were not returning to Parliament.
“It’s a huge loss for Pacific people overall.
“If you look at just the investment that has been made over the last six years, specifically towards Pacific people, it’s a huge increase right across the board.
“Having Pacific people as representatives actually gives you that advantage. Having the large number of Pacific people we had advocating and sitting around the table made sure that Pacific people were not forgotten and that the voices of our communities was at the forefront.
“For that reason, I’m not looking forward to a change in government.”
Despite previous wins, Salesa said she did not take anything for granted.
“I had a team of volunteers and we knocked on every street in the entire electorate – that’s close to 30,000 homes. We rang every person we had a phone number for – twice. So we’ve done a whole lot of work.
“However that still didn’t lift the advanced vote numbers. We know though, from the polling booths around South Auckland, from what people were telling me, there were long queues so quite a lot of people left it to the last minute.
The Greens, now in opposition, have added one more Pacific voice to their party.
Collins stood against Salesa in Panmure-Ōtāhuhu but struggled to shake Labour’s favour, gaining just over 2000 votes by the end of the night.
The former Auckland councillor, a well-known and respected voice in the community, will join Teanau Tuiono on the opposition bench.
Collins chose to spend a quiet evening at home with his family before heading to the Green Party headquarters in the Auckland CBD.
The Green Party is the only party with a policy directly addressing Pasifika. Its Tagata Moana policy focuses on Pacific and indigenous-led models in healthcare, housing, climate change, education and immigration pathways for seasonal workers.
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