Te Pāti Māori incumbent Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke and political journalist Maiki Sherman went back and forth about the issue in an onstage exchange in Rotorua.
Maipi-Clarke, 24, holds a commanding lead in the latest Whakaata Māori-Curia poll, over Labour challenger Kingi Kiriona.
That comfortable margin is not a surprise given Maipi-Clarke’s performance over the last three years. She’s been labelled a “rockstar” politician, lauded overseas and when her party was going through its roughest patch of instability - losing three MPs over the term - she remained a symbol of maturity.
That does not mean she is immune to pressure.
Sherman asked Maipi-Clarke about whether there was any truth to reports she had considered leaving Te Pāti Māori.
The MP said she’d hosted a number of hui cross the rohe on the issue.
“Where does the people want me to go? ... because at the end of the day, our people know that Hauraki-Waikato voted me in, where do we need to go next,” she said before being interrupted.
“Did you consider leaving the party at all,” Sherman asked again.
“Considered leaving, where is our journey at politics in future..
“Yes or no? Did you consider leaving the party?
“Considered leaving politics to see where our people need me to go.
“You considered leaving politics all together,” Maiki asked.
Someone from the crowd then grumbled: “Maiki.”
At that point Maipi-Clarke did not offer any further explanation but looked away from the moderator who was holding her arms out to the crowd.
Co-moderator Julian Wilcox moved the moment on and despite that exchange, the debate on a whole was good natured between the candidates.
Former broadcaster and kapa haka exponent Kiriona offered a confident performance.
To a question about his polling result, Kiriona said his result reminded him of the late Speaker Adrian Rurawhe who held Te Tai Hauāuru before Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. Kiriona noted Rurawhe never won a poll, but there was a big but.
“He won his electorate every time he ran. I’ll take the poll as a sign of good things to come hopefully,” he said to cheers.
Strategic voting is taking centre stage in this year’s election with Te Pāti Māori campaigning for electorate seats only.
The Te Pāti Māori argument for Hauraki-Waikato is that with his place at 22 on the Labour list, Kiriona could be a two-for-one-candidate if voters give their candidate tick to Maipi-Clarke.
Kiriona did not see it that way.
“And the reality is that whānau think they can get me in as a list MP, there is only so much that I can do for the 15 to 30,000 dollars that I would get to advocate for whānau, versus an electorate MP that ends up with 800,000 to a million dollars to establish offices, to hire staff, to properly advocate for whānau.”
Maipi-Clarke said it was a fair strategy.
“Yeah, because the two for one makes sure that we get this government out. I get into politics and also the strategy that Labour are proposing literally kicks me out.”
Through this campaign Waikato-Tainui leaders including Tukoroirangi Morgan have expressed pride in the pair.
That sentiment carried over to the debate, one audience member said both were “awesome” candidates while another, Patara Berryman reminded the pair of their royal endorsement.
“We know you’ve been endorsed by Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po on the premise ka mahi kotahi kōrua ... so how does that work if your party policies don’t align?
Kiriona said he’d known the MP since she was a baby as he used to work with her father at TVNZ.
“The blessing was afforded to us on the condition that we work together meaning that we work amicably on the campaign trail and it has been an amicable journey so far.
Maipi-Clarke said the war wasn’t between the pair of them.
“If there’s anyone whose going to need each other it’s us. Because when we’re going up against Taxpayer’s Union, when we’re going up against Act Party, when we’re going up against Hobson’s Pledge ... we have to see beyond the seventh of November.”
