An unconventional voter enrolment campaign launched by the Green Party’s Waiariki candidate, Tania Waikato, is turning heads and dividing political opinion.
Featuring images of young Māori women in bikinis and shirtless Māori men, the social media drive was specifically crafted to capture the attention of politically disengaged 18-to-25-year-olds.
While the strategy has successfully generated significant online traction, it has also raised eyebrows and drawn sharp criticism from some political figures.
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones was quick to condemn the approach, remarking, “It seems as if Tania Waikato is pursuing exhibitionism.”
Unfazed by the pushback, Waikato remains focused on the campaign’s intent and the genuine support it has generated online—particularly among those registering on the Māori roll.
She notes that the provocative imagery was never designed for a traditional political audience, but rather to cut through the noise and reach youth where they are.
“A person who had been adopted and didn’t know they were Māori until they were in their 30’s. And she wrote and said that because of the campaign she finally switched to the Māori roll, because she felt like she was Māori enough,” she says
“Having someone like that reclaim their whakapapa and feel like they can stand up as Māori this election made all of it worth it.”
Electoral Roll Deadlines Approach
Since March 2023, changes to electoral law mean voters can switch between the general and Māori rolls, setting a strict deadline of midnight August 6.
Furthermore, the Electoral Amendment Bill which passed last year also ended same-day enrolment, barred prisoners from voting and required people to enroll at least 13 days before the election.
Against this ticking clock, Waikato argues her campaign’s metrics speak for themselves.
“The key stat for me is that we are now over 3,500 people that have clicked through to the vote.nz website,” she explains.
“That’s the only metric that we can track through socials. We can’t tell how many of them actually enrolled or what they did once they got there. But the fact that 3,500 people have actually clicked on the link and gone through the website, for me, is worth every piece of criticism thrown at me.”
Mixed Response from the Green Party
While the campaign has found a foothold online, the unorthodox approach has been met with a more measured response from within the Green Party itself.
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson voiced her support for the underlying kaupapa (purpose) of getting youth enrolled, while acknowledging that images of people in bikinis or without shirts are a departure from standard political messaging.
Waikato understands that the campaign’s aesthetics won’t appeal to everyone, even among her own colleagues.
“As I said, it’s not for everyone, even within our own party. There are people who are like, ‘that’s not really my thing,’” she says.
“That’s the beautiful thing about Te Pāti Kākāriki; we are a very diverse bunch of people. But we understand not one person is bigger than the kaupapa.”
Māori voters seeking to update their details or switch to the Māori roll can do so via the official Vote NZ website.
