Analysis: In 2024, tens of thousands marched in opposition to David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill and related legislative reforms, in what became a historic and precedent-setting hīkoi.
Māori and non-Māori voices alike described the proposal as divisive and constitutionally regressive. It triggered record-breaking public submissions and a tidal wave of activism that remains active today.
It was one of several policy reforms, repeals and proposals that sparked backlash, described by critics as an erosion and regression of Treaty and Māori rights and interests.
It goes beyond policy and legislation, particularly in an election year, where race-based rhetoric often intensifies, and Māori issues become political flashpoints.
More recently, ACT and NZ First objected to the New Zealand Defence Force’s updated doctrine, which referenced te ao Māori concepts and recognised Māori cultural interests under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour publicly criticised the policy, reinforcing his broader resistance to what he characterises as the embedding of Māori cultural frameworks within state institutions.
Against that backdrop, it may seem difficult to reconcile why Seymour has strongly backed and approved funding for a significant number of kaupapa Māori charter schools.
In the past week alone, he has announced two new kaupapa Māori charter schools, bringing the total number of Māori-focused charter schools to seven of the 20 approved nationwide, more than a third, with more expected.
Is this political recalibration? A rhetorical counterweight to accusations of racism? Or is it, as he argues, philosophical consistency?
On social media, Seymour leaned directly into the criticism.
“Here’s something the media won’t tell you: A fifth Māori-focused charter school was announced today, with more expected this month. So with all the lazy accusations of racism, why is ACT empowering Māori communities to create schools? Because we believe in equal rights.”
“Charter schools empower all communities equally to educate their children in the way that works best for them. They are the antidote to the usual one-size-fits-all approach imposed from Wellington.”
“ACT’s belief is simple: more power to you, less to government. This is the moral way to govern a country.”
He has described the approvals as “tino rangatiratanga in action.”
For Seymour, there is no contradiction. In his framing, the tension between equality and equity does not arise.
“My only real belief is freedom. You should be able to live the way that you want to live,” he says.
“There’s a lot of people who want to force Māori culture onto other people. I oppose that. But equally, Māori have a long history of having other people’s culture forced on them. I support Māori being able to live the way that they want to live.”
He frames charter schools as consistent with that philosophy.
“If it’s true that the ACT Party hates all things Māori, as people like to say, why are roughly more than a quarter of all charter schools Māori?” he posed.
For many Māori communities, however, the aspiration to establish independent, iwi-led schools predates Seymour entirely.
Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei’s new kura, Te Kura o Ngāti Whātua ki Tāmaki, the most recent to be announced, will open at Matariki this year, beginning with Year 9 and 10 tauira in Auckland’s CBD.
For Deputy Chair Ngarimu Blair, the decision has nothing to do with political alignment.
“Mai anō ko reira te hiahia, te wawata kia whakatū tētahi kura mō ngā uri o Tūperiri i runga i tōna ake mana motuhake,” he says.
The aspiration predates this Government. It predates the last.
“Ahakoa te kāwana, he Reipa, he Nāhinara, ko reira te hiahia.”
Blair situates the decision within a much longer historical arc.
“When you look back to 1840 and how many governors we’ve had, including Governor Grey and through the generations, we have always respected as an iwi that welcomed Pākehā to our shores, that signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi, that gave land to enable the settlement of our rohe, that we’ve always tried to work in partnership.
“Whoever is sitting in those seats, we do our best to ensure we get the best outcomes out of those relationships.”
For Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, the charter model is not an endorsement of a politician. It is a vehicle.
As a Kura Hourua, it allows the iwi to shape curriculum around iwi pūrākau, whakapapa and tikanga while still meeting state requirements for literacy, numeracy and attendance.
“Ko te whāinga kia tupu ngā uri hei rangatira mō āpōpō.”
The distinction, then, may not lie in who holds office, but in who holds authority over tamariki.
For Seymour, the common thread between Treaty reform and charter schools is freedom and choice.
For Māori communities, the common and enduring thread is mana motuhake.
The tension between those two frameworks is political. The aspiration to educate Māori children in Māori ways, however, is generational.
