Hauraki-Waikato: Rangatahi to take a stand on Te Tiriti this election

As the deadline to enrol to vote looms at midnight, young Māori in the Hauraki-Waikato electorate are urging their peers to take their protest cries to the ballot box.

The electorate is as complex and vast as the Waikato River that flows through it, and its main urban centres and towns include Coromandel, Hamilton, Huntly, and Raglan.

Among the many election issues weighing on them is Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Contentious debates around its principles and place in society saw tens of thousands take to the streets in the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti nationwide protest in 2024.

But voter turnout has been historically low here especially for young people and many are determined to turn that around.

A new generation of voters in Hauraki-Waikato say this will be a defining election for the Treaty of Waitangi.

Rangatahi voter Danielle Marks described this year’s upcoming election as one of the country’s most monumental.

“This government has not been kind to rangatahi Māori, hasn't been kind to Māori in general, hasn't been kind to our Rainbow communities, hasn't been kind to disabled people. So on the line is actually a lot of livelihoods at the end of the day.”

Marks works with rangatahi, supporting those without a home to find housing.

She said the Move-on Orders bill affected the rangatahi that she worked with, and who she said were already nervous that they were thought less than because they were homeless and had no access to benefits.

Jobs were hard to come by too. Like many people, she said she struggled to find full-time employment before landing her current role, saying of the jobs available many were only fixed term.

In a climate where the cost of rent, food and petrol is rising, you want to avoid instability, she said.

“There's less and less jobs because there's less government funding to have public service roles or any of the not-for-profit charities that have relied on government funding in the past have now just been cut 50%.”

For Te Waiheruata Rāwiri, a teacher, wellbeing advocate, and rangatahi himself, this election is an important one.

He said he became disenfranchised by the political system - the need for systemic change to produce positive outcomes for Māori weighed on his mind and he found the political western system did not align with him.

On top of that, he said it was hard for him to discern who to vote for in the wake of Te Pāti Māori’s break up.

“When I saw how those relationships and the handling of those issues between Māori people was executed, it really left me feeling quite kawa (sour/put off).”

“But then I was reminded, or kind of encouraged by Tina Ngata that we shouldn't be voting for a party, we should be voting for our values.”

In November 2024, a nationwide hīkoi that started at Te Rerenga Wairua and ended nine days later in Wellington saw tens of thousands of people march on to Parliament in a display of support for Te Tiriti o Waitangi and in opposition to the Treaty Principles Bill.

Rāwiri said participating in the hīkoi when it arrived in Kirikiriroa felt like he was putting words into action and doing something in service of the issues that were important to him. It made him feel as if he was part of a movement.

“I actually belonged to this country because I was standing up for something that a lot of people, not only [those] you could see on social media talking about and agreeing, but you could see it in front of you. It had manifested into actual people showing up,”

He believes the entrenchment of Te Tiriti o Waitangi would solve many of today’s issues.

“When I think about things like poverty, if we get Te Tiriti o Waitangi right, we can get things like the relationship between like tangata Tiriti and tangata whenua. If we get biculturalism right, we can get multiculturalism right, and we can get society right and working as a nation.

“And we can truly achieve unity as a nation, not unity in what it looks like for NZ First or ACT or National, but a unification that is relevant and relatable for all people of Aotearoa New Zealand,” said Rāwiri.

For Marks, she wants to see Te Tiriti entrenched too, and for the Waitangi Tribunal to be given “teeth” to enforce their recommendations.

“For me, it's voting for Te Tiriti and hopefully a constitutional transformation in the eyes of Matike Mai – that would be the people and the party I'll be voting for in this election.”

Growing up, Jahvaya Wheki said she didn't understand what it meant to vote.

It wasn’t until she got involved in the community, particularly within the youth sector, that she learnt she had a role to play.

“I think since feeling more connected to the city, I've really found a purpose, and I really care about our city, the people in it, the stories that we tell, the way that tangata Tiriti, tauiwi, tangata whenua feel connected to place, I think plays a massive role for me in voting.”

Wheki said a lot of her whānau still do not vote.

“Unfortunately, it's like catch 22: we have to participate in it in order to change it and I think that could be really hard to understand why we have to participate if we feel that our systems aren't set up for us.”

In the last election, nearly one in three 18- to 24-year-olds enrolled to vote in Hauraki-Waikato did not.

Marks believes apathy plays a part, reaffirmed by a government that ignores their attempts to engage. They may not know the impact politics can have on their lives either, she said, referring to the price of petrol, the cost of living, the price of food and global events as things people do not realise are influenced by politics.

“There's all these sorts of little bits and pieces that people aren't connecting their everyday experiences to the effect of voting and then that turning into political change in Aotearoa.”

Rāwiri said politics can be overwhelming for rangatahi take on when there are big issues like the cost of living and the rising prices – he said they were quite heavy issues that weigh on Māori.

Language used in the media and by politicians may not resonate with rangatahi either and can be a barrier, said Rāwiri.

“It'd be nice when our politicians talk about things that they talk about it using a language that everybody can understand and can connect with.”

Marks agrees, saying rangatahi pay attention to when people share their values and articulate in a “normal” way, without the need for words like ‘communism’ or ‘fascism’ which she said are hard to unpack and are often misused by politicians.

She said politicians like Green Party co-leader Chloe Swarbrick resonate with a lot of young people for her conviction.

“You can see it when Chloe [Swarbrick]'s getting angry in Parliament and being like, ‘This is absurd, we should not be in a cost of living crisis, we have the means to do this’. Rangatahi can feel that through the screen or through the words that they read, and that's something that we need to capitalise on as a wider society, to speak about our values, ten toes down.”

Law student Te Atamihi Papa feels positive about the choice of candidates for Hauraki-Waikato.

Incumbent MP Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke from Te Pāti Māori and Labour Party’s Kingi Kiriona are both experienced in their fields and are a “really cool bunch of people”.

“I think it's going to be a really hard choice for a lot of the voters, especially young voters. One, because they look up to Hana, but two, because they look up to Kingi as an uncle, they respect him so, yeah. I'm positive that whoever we choose is going to represent us well.”

Marks said she was grateful for the likes of Maipi-Clarke.

“Ripping up the Treaty Principles bill was a real proud moment to have that as our Hauraki-Waikato MP."

“Also for someone who is under 25 to be in the halls of power doing such a strong action that they've mobilised the rest of the country to be like, this is worth fighting for, Te Tiriti o Waitangi is something to be proud about, whether you are Māori or non Māori."

Papa agrees, adding that while it was controversial, it was “really cool” to see tikanga like the haka, as well as waiata and karakia, play out in Parliament.

Marks also praised Green Party MP Tamatha Paul for calling out National-ACT-New Zealand First MPs.

“It sometimes feels like there's a little bit of niceties and then there's the absolute absurdity of the name calling across. But then Tamatha just being like: ‘Hey, you're the one that's actually capitalising on this law change, that's not fair for everyday New Zealanders'."

Papa said mistrust in elected officials and government processes can keep rangatahi from engaging.

She also believes rangatahi don’t think their voice matters or that their one vote would not make a difference against the majority.

Wheki can relate: “Being real, sometimes I feel like that as well, but I think when we take the statistics and we hear that 18- to 24-year-olds, if we voted like 60- to 64-year-olds we would change the whole political landscape.”

Mobilising 200,000 rangatahi to enrol to vote is the kind of action that excites Wheki.

“When we think about the difference they can make, and when we think about centring ourselves in a collective, some mindset shift! You know? We're part of the movement, baby, we've got the collective!”

When asked how attitudes could be changed towards voting, Marks said it was about engaging with rangatahi on their own turf.

“I went clubbing the other night and was just like looking around and there were heaps of young people and I was like 'oh, are you guys enrolled to vote?' And they were like 'nah', and I was like 'c'mon! sit down and do it with me!'”

She said she also went to the Black Ferns game wearing a shirt with the question ‘Are you enrolled to vote?’ on it which received positive feedback.

“So making the places that aren't inherently political a political place to kind of talk about 'are you enrolled to vote?’ I don't care if you vote for whoever you want, I just want to know if you're enrolled to vote and if you're asking other people.”

Papa said she was a strong believer in voting to have your voice heard and that those who don’t vote can’t be mad at a result they choose not to participate in.

She’s voting so the issues that she sees today “aren’t an issue tomorrow” and urges rangatahi to do the same.

“Don't complain later when you might not get the result you were hoping for. But also, let your voice be heard and even if you don't know who to vote for just follow your gut and follow your heart and they will never lead you astray.”

Or as Wheki likes to put it: “You’re a GOAT if you vote, so be the GOAT and vote!”