Ikaroa-Rāwhiti: Meet the candidates for the east North Island electorate

In the latest of its debates between candidates in the Māori seats, TVNZ’s Marae speaks to three hopefuls in Ikaroa-Rāwhiti.

The electorate is made up of regions in the east of the North Island, stretching from the East Coast through Gisborne, Wairoa and Hawke’s Bay across to Wairarapa and the Hutt Valley.

There are currently more than 44,000 people enrolled on the Māori roll. In 2023, the electorate had a population of 66,474, but following changes to its boundary for 2026, it has increased to 73,574.

Labour’s Cushla Tangaere-Manuel won Ikaroa-Rāwhiti in 2023 with just over 54% of the vote, finishing 2,874 votes ahead of Te Pāti Māori candidate and former Labour minister Meka Whaitiri.

Tangaere-Manuel joined Te Pāti Māori’s Haley Maxwell and Green Party’s Heather Te Au-Skipworth, a former candidate for Te Pāti Māori herself, in a debate with Marae’s Scotty Morrison.

Over recent years, Ikaroa-Rāwhiti has been hit by severe weather-related events that have caused local state of emergencies, evacuations, road closures and recovery efforts due to major flooding and landslides of earth and damaging forestry slash.

Te Au-Skipworth said the "poorly managed" commercial pine slash has impacted the whenua and waterways so the party would work with Māori-led forestry organisation to “clean up” practice, restore native forests and protect customary use rights.

“We'll also end perpetual leases and ensure that never again can the Crown arbitrarily take Māori ancestral land, urupā, wāhi tapu and marae,” she said.

Maxwell said slash is a huge issue and that while the community had a plan to address it, the current government “slashed it”. She said Te Pāti Māori would look to bring it back and fund it.

She added that the forestry industry needed to be held accountable.

“We want to put the responsibility back on the forestry, they need to take responsibility because it's hāngai (linked, associated) to what's happening to the forestry and whenua at the moment, and with the weather, Ikaroa-Rāwhiti is being hit hard.”

Tangaere-Manuel said forestry was not just an economic issue but an emotional one. She said the situation was particularly dire north of Tokomaru Bay.

“What we've seen is people, community-led initiatives being rejected and everyone involved feeling like things are being done to them rather than with them.”

She said under a Labour-led government, they would continue to work with communities on local initiatives while taking into account economic impacts.

“Because a lot of our whānau are gainfully employed in the forestry – so it's not to say, 'just take that away'. How are we going to support the transition of that?”

Te Au-Skipworth said the Greens would create a Māori climate resilience fund through their Te Wao Nui a Tāne policy to ensure communities are not left to defend themselves as “people’s minds are still at a real and raw state”. It will also ensure marae are able to be stood up.

The investment will cost $2.4 billion, she said, which they intend to fund from taxing the “super-rich” at an estimated net revenue of $5.15 billion a year.

Tangaere-Manuel said resilience is underfunded.

“I've been in floods in Waiwhetu, in South Wairarapa, Kahungunu whānau, all the way right up home. Our people are resilient, that's why they keep standing up our communities so quickly. We need to continue to invest in that skill development.”

She said that they had civil defence teams trained “up and down” Tairāwhiti and that needs to be rolled out across the electorate.

On infrastructure and roads, Tangaere-Manuel was critical of the government investing in Roads of National Significance over making existing roads more robust.

“What you won't hear from Labour is that we're going to go around building new roads of ‘National Party significance’. We're going to invest in what we already have.

“People would have seen me passionately advocating for State Highway 35 because that's not just a road, that's a lifeline.”

According to NZ Transport Agency, State Highway 35 remains in a “fragile state”. Since January, it has closed multiple times due to severe weather incidents, landslips and rock falls. Recovery road works continue in several sections of the 334km long stretch of road around the East Cape.

Tangaere-Manuel said Labour would look to scrap new roading projects that have yet to start and reassess those that have already started.

“If it's underway, if it's working and it's productive we will support it, however we need to make sure the infrastructure we already have, people already rely on, is robust.”

Maxwell agreed that long-term investment is needed over another “patch up job” and that Te Pāti Māori would build roads for “whānau to get home”.

Te Au-Skipworth said the Green Party would invest in community-led regional development and would fund by-Māori for-Māori public transport.

“So that our whānau are ensured to be able to get where they need to get to, but also ensuring that we are specifically targeting our isolated rural communities, marae and kōhanga reo, and kura.”

Candidates were asked to explain how they would deliver better jobs and economic opportunities for the electorate.

Te Au-Skipworth said it was important to acknowledge the "application fatigue" of a competitive job market and that many were a couple of pay or benefit cheques away from becoming homeless.

“We talk about the pipeline of potential that highlights our whānau that are out of work to be able to apply for jobs that uplift them, to help us deal with confronting challenges that we have.”

She said the party’s 40,000 green jobs will restore infrastructure, restore nature, and build homes.

“We've got our Ka Ora Ka Ako policy that will bring back 2,000 jobs for our local people, serving our local communities, we have our supermarket KiwiMart economy that will be circular. We also bring our KiwiPower into power as well as properly resource our hospitals and our public services.”

For Maxwell, the issue was personal, revealing she had spent more than 18 months applying for mahi.

“That's how hard it is to get a job in Ikaroa-Rāwhiti, even if you have all the skills. So yeah, e whakaaro nui ana ahau ki te hunga e whai tūranga mahi (I feel for jobseekers).”

She said Te Pāti Māori want to see more jobs to keep people from leaving.

“We know in Ikaroa-Rāwhiti we have all the resources, but it leaves Ikaroa-Rāwhiti. The trees leave, the fish leave, the people leave. And then our rangatahi having to leave because they feel like there is nothing there for them.”

She added that those earning less than $30,000 would not be taxed under their policy.

Tangaere-Manuel said it was “naturally” a focus for Labour, listing several of the party’s policies on investing in infrastructure and businesses to create jobs; lifting the threshold for people to earn more before having to pay tax; and bringing back Māori Trades Training and Apprenticeship Boost.

“Part of mana motuhake is giving people tools to develop their own skills, build their own business, and that becomes circular economy.”

Morrison asked candidates to list one thing they would do to ensure people access healthcare when they need it.

Tangaere-Manuel said as part of Labour’s health “manifesto” they would pay for three free GP visits and bring back free prescriptions, funded by a targeted capital gains tax policy.

Maxwell, tongue-in-cheek, said they would change the government, and fund Māori services.

“Because we know that our people feel more comfortable when it's us answering the door, when it's us checking on them.”

Te Au-Skipworth said the Green Party’s tax system would allow for a “whole heap of things” including resourcing and paying staff well, standing up mobile clinics to reach isolated rural communities, as well as provide free primary healthcare and dental.

All candidates were asked to imagine a scenario where their party was in a position to form the government – what would their bottom-line for Māori be?

Te Au-Skipworth said it was simple as the party’s core principle: people and planet before profit.

Maxwell said the entrenchment of Te Tiriti o Waitangi is the reason she is standing. “We know that Te Tiriti o Waitangi is in every sector, if it's entrenched in every sector, the whole system will transform into what's good for Māori is good for all.”

Tangaere-Manuel said as the mandated voice of the electorate it would be about ensuring their voice is at the decision-making tables.

“Politics, like life, is about compromise and Ikaroa-Rāwhiti didn't put me there to walk away. So that's my commitment to stay there even when the decisions are tough because there's always the opportunity to manage how some of the decisions are delivered across our people and across our rohe.”

Te Au-Skipworth outlined her experience as a governor, community leader, and an astute politician who can decipher policy and legislation. She also credited establishing the successful sporting event IronMāori for the skill of building relationships.

“As the IronMāori lady, I had to do that. That will ensure relationships are the key to ensuring that we get things over the line.”

Maxwell said she was a hardworking “māmā on a mission to be a politician” and a voice for the electorate.

“I will represent Ikaroa-Rāwhiti and all it will take is one tick, whānau, candidate vote Te Pati Māori, and all three of us can possibly be in that house representing us.”

Tangaere-Manuel said she has spent the last two years traversing the electorate from Te Awakairangi in the south, to Pōtaka in the north, “and all of our rohe in between” to take kōrero back to Parliament.

“I've also been learning the rules of the whare and I am ready to govern. I am ready to be your mandated voice in government. So leave nothing to chance, if you want to guarantee change of this government, vote Labour. We're asking for two ticks in 26, and keep pushing for Cush and I'll keep pushing for you.”