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A former Gisborne District Councillor has created a Facebook group for people to support embattled New Plymouth mayor Andrew Judd.
Manu Caddie says as a Pakeha he was impressed with the way Mr Judd came to embrace Maori concerns and push for better Maori representation.
The page is a response to TVNZ broadcaster Mike Hosking, who finished an interview segment with Mr Judd by saying there was nothing wrong with Maori representation on councils because any Maori that wants to can stand, and the mayor was completely out of touch with middle New Zealand.
"We could have set up an anti-Mike Hosking page but there are probably a few of those already. We decided there was something positive that we could do that would let Andrew know there is wide support. No one should have to put up with the kind of stuff he has and just wanted to create a space for new Zealanders to share their views and their messages of support," Mr Caddie says.
The page has already attraced more than 7000 members, including many Pakeha from Taranaki who want people to know it's not the racism capital of New Zealand.
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