Incumbent MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke of Te Pāti Māori is standing to ensure strong Māori representation and advocacy in Parliament, whether in Government or Opposition. She seeks the candidate vote to advance key priorities including entrenching Te Tiriti o Waitangi, progressing Treaty settlements for Hauraki-Waikato and Tainui, and empowering mana whenua decision-making.
Labour candidate and challenger Kingi Kiriona is running to secure direct electorate representation and resources to establish local offices and support services for whānau. He advocates for reversing government changes to Te Ture Whai Mana to restore the Waikato River, supporting Te Tiriti recognition in schools, and addressing cost-of-living challenges across Hauraki-Waikato communities.
Kiriona toa o te hapori, ū ki te whakarauora awa, aro ki te whakangawari i ngā utu taumaha mō ngā whānau
E hikaka ana a Kingi Kiriona ki te tū hei kaitono mō Reipa ki te rohe kua roa e puritia ana e tōna Pāti e whakapono ana ia kei a ia ngā pukenga kia upoko pakaru te pakanga ki rō Whare Pāremata ki te waimarie ka whiwhi i a ia te tūru Māori nei.
“Ko te whakatika i ngā mahi hē a te Kāwanatanga ki Te Ture Whai Mana, e tīmata anō ai ngā mahi whakarauora o te awa o Waikato, he kaupapa nui tēnā. Ko te tautoko i te whakamanatanga o Te Tiriti o Waitangi hei kaupapa matua mā ngā poari o ngā kura,” hei tā Kingi.
“Ko te tangata ka whiwhi i te pōti a kaitōrangapū, candidate vote, ka riro i a ia ngā rawa ki te whakatū tari, ki te whakatū kaimahi, hei āwhina i ngā whānau. Ko te mema pāremata rārangi noa iho nei, kāore e whiwhi i ērā rawa. Nō reira, koinā te take e āki ana au i te tangata kia pōti i te tangata e mōhiotia ana koe ka noho hei kaitautoko i a koe, i tō whānau,” hei tāna anō.
“Ia wā ka tae atu tātou ki te hokomaha, e kite ana tātou i te nui o ngā utu mō te kai. Ia marama, e whiwhi ai tātou i ngā nama mō te hiko, e rongo ana tātou i te taumaha. Nō reira, ēnei āhuatanga katoa te tino take me kaua e moumou i tō tātou mana ki te pōti. Nō reira, e puta ki te pōti i roto i ngā wiki e rua kei mua i te aroaro.”
I te Turei 27 o Oketopa ka tae ā-tinana a Kingi rātou ko tōna whānau ki te hokomaha o Te Awa i Te Rapa ki Kirikiriroa ki te tuku i ā rātou pōti.
“Inā whai i te mahere, ko te whāinga matua, ko te āta whakamana i ngā hiahia me ngā tūmanako o te rohe whānui o Hauraki-Waikato. Koinā te whāinga matua nā te mea ko rātou kei te āki, kei te whakatēnātēnā i a au ki te whai i te huarahi nei.”
Maipi-Clarke focuses on Te Tiriti, settlements, and securing candidate vote
Hana-Rawhiti recently launched her book “State of the Rohe,’ which identified key issues that she’ll use to problem solve and come up with solutions if she’s re-elected as the MP for Hauraki Waikato.
“We’re only asking for the candidate vote. So I’m asking for the candidate vote and not the party vote. More MPs in Parliament. Even though it has been challenging over these past three years, I’m actually really excited to see where we can go and what the future of Māori and Indigenous politics looks like,” says Maipi-Clarke.
“Ko te manako ia ka haere ki roto i te Kāwanatanga, we’ve been opposition MPs for the first term, so for three years. Regardless if we get in or not to the Government, what we want to do is make sure that Māori voice is represented,” she says.
“Our three bottom lines are entrenching Te Tiriti o Waitangi, what does that look like through the members bill we created, stopping the pause on PC1, The Treaty Settlements that need to still go over the line for Hauraki-Waikato and the waka of Tainui, reinforcing Mana Whakahono aa-Rohe, stopping some of the fast track agreements so that mana whenua can have engagement in that.”
“It’s about creating those relationships even further to see what we can do but the goal is to get in cabinet, get in the decision making and to allocate those resources and funding into our rohe.”