March 11, 2015
Peters backing himself to win
A senior New Zealand First MP says the party is not counting on Labour's candidate Willow Jean Prime stepping aside in the Northland by-election.
Polls show Winston Peters would be a clear winner over National's Mark Osborne if Ms Prime drops out.
That would allow New Zealand First to bring another list MP into parliament, giving the Maori Party and United Future's Peter Dunne the balance of power.
Pita Paraone says while that's a discussion Labour needs to have with its candidate if it truly wants the voters of Northland to send the Government a message, the seat is still winnable with Ms Prime in the race.
"New Zealand First is certainly not relying on other political parties to get into parliament and so that is why you are seeing Winston out there tramping the back roads of Northland to show he is the man who can represent Northland and their views much stronger than any other candidate," he says.
Mr Paraone says the Government's promise to upgrade one lane bridges throughout the electorate shows the campaign is already working.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH PITA PARAONE CLICK ON THE LINK
https://secure.zeald.com/uma/play_podcast?podlink=MjcwOTk=
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