Te Tai Tonga: Meet the candidates for NZ's biggest electorate

Four candidates are vying for the mandate to represent the country’s biggest electorate: Te Tai Tonga. The Māori electorate covers the South Island, Stewart Island, the Chatham Islands, Wellington and parts of the Hutt Valley – over 150,000 square kilometres.

Watch Marae’s political debate on TVNZ+.

In 2023, the electorate had a 68% voter turnout. With 12,828 votes, Tākuta Ferris won the seat for Te Pāti Māori from Labour’s Rino Tirikatene who received 10,004. Labour led the party vote at 37%.

Ferris, who is now an Independent MP after being expelled from his former party, joined Labour’s Mananui Ramsden, Lisa Marie Murch of Te Pāti Māori and Green Party candidate Dr Lisa Te Morenga in a live debate with Marae’s Scotty Morrison.

Ferris used his first opening remarks to encourage voters to vote and achieve the "critical job" he said they needed to do: change the government. He urged them to be kind and have conversations with their whānau.

Te Morenga said she supported the call to change the government and made the claim that the Green Party was currently the “strongest" Māori party in Parliament.

A professor in Māori health and nutrition with over 20 years of experience in public health research, teaching and advocacy, including forestry research and evaluation work, Te Morenga said Te Tai Tonga voters deserved a candidate who can bring “clear, evidence-based, strategic thinking” and advocate for “practical, fair policies and legislation that improves people's lives”.

Murch highlighted being “born and bred” and living in the electorate, and having strong relationships with iwi from across the electorate "who are our voices for our people".

Ramsden vowed to be “an authentic leader” whether in Parliament, on the pā or in the communities.

“I will be the MP that our people deserve, a leader that will make you proud and the voice that you deserve,” he said.

Ferris was asked what he has achieved as the incumbent MP.

"Our key mission was to grow the understanding of our people, drive in education and increase engagement," he said.

"There obviously weren't a lot of opportunities to achieve big things and big wins with the current government but engaging with the people was our main thing and doing that on the premise and basis of education and raising that education – that was our key goal and I think we've done very well in that sense."

The remaining candidates were asked how they would represent the electorate and the consensus was to spend as much time in the region, listen and show up for the people.

Ramsden, a former Environment Canterbury cultural advisor, said the electorate’s most pressing environmental issue was "the protection of Te Tiriti o Waitangi".

He said the Labour Party was committed to partnering with hapū and iwi on te taiao.

Morrison took the opportunity to ask Te Pāti Māori’s Murch if she thought the Labour Party was committed to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

She replied that all parties probably believe they are, but Te Pāti Māori was the only one underpinned by Te Tiriti – a claim Te Morenga refuted as a candidate from the Tiriti-led Green Party.

Both Te Morenga and Ferris agreed water quality is a big issue – clean drinking water, rivers, lakes and oceans, including sustainable fisheries.

On health, Te Morenga led with the need for more funding for primary healthcare and a structural overhaul.

“In the interim though we would propose sending some mobile health vans out around the rohe to make sure we can deliver healthcare services, diagnostic services to our whānau that can’t easily get to a hospital."

"Good commonsense ideas," agreed Ferris.

Ramsden said the biggest issue for healthcare across the motu is cost and Labour is committed to three free GP visits and enabling health professionals to set up "GP centres" within communities in need. He said they plan to fund it with a capital gains tax.

Murch said Te Pāti Māori is committed to ensuring health and dental services are free.

Taxing wealth was widely agreed to around the table.

Ferris said a "simple solution" to redistribute resources is to take money from the Government’s $3 billion landlord tax cut.

"Redirect that into ensuring that Māori health models and social services models are there and that that safety net is there for our people."

He said Māori have historically been in low income and poverty categories and are falling deeper into homelessness.

"As the safety net continues to be stripped out, there needs to be an immediate reinstating of it and that's a very simple option that’s on the table right now."

Murch said Te Pāti Māori wants to work with iwi to support their housing initiatives and schemes, such as Kai Tahu’s Nōhaka Rau that help iwi members with financial literacy, house buying processes, deposit top-ups, and advice on insurance.

"We need to continue to work with our iwi to support them in our housing models for our whānau," she said.

Ramsden, a qualified carpenter, spoke of an aunt in an inadequate housing situation having to choose between being cold or hungry. He said Labour’s Solar Saver policy, offering subsidies on set-up costs as well as loan schemes, would ensure whānau won’t need to make that choice.

Ferris said government needs to get into partnership deals with iwi and build more houses, and rent should be at-cost basis. Iwi and community providers are in the space, government has the funding, and there are whānau with the need, he said.

Te Morenga made mention of the Greens tax policy – first $10,000 tax-free – that she said will make most people better off “which will help with housing”.

She said housing the homeless was important, and in terms of renters, the party has proposed a Renters’ Bill of Rights to cap annual rent increases and reverse no-cause evictions. They also want to introduce a rental warrant of fitness.

All candidates were asked to imagine a scenario where their vote forms the government – what would their non-negotiables be?

Both Ferris and Ramsden said Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Te Morenga said as a significant party there would be no "single" non-negotiable, but she would be pushing for the party’s tax plan.

Murch, a former primary teacher and kaupapa Māori educator, said enhancing educational success is her bottom line. She said the party is proposing to establish a Māori Education Authority to support kura. They also want to support teachers and to fix the lunches in schools programme.

"Education isn’t just about the classroom it’s about the future," she said.