August 01, 2022
Big Māori turnout needed for council reform
Ruapehu mayoral candidate Fiona Kahukura Hadley-Chase is calling on whānau Māori to enrol for October’s local body elections.
The Taumarunui native says she was inspired to run for the top job after attending Te Paati Māori’s Matike Mai conference last month after earlier campaigning for Māori wards in Ruapehu and Rangitikei Regional Council.
She says for any Māori to succeed, Māori needs to turn out in force at the ballot.
“So I do encourage each and every one of you, wherever you may be, to encourage your whānau to get out there because this is a real change, this is transformational change, our people have been working at this for decades and Māori wards is the first step towards change so that we better our society and better our nation,” Ms Fiona Kahukura Hadley-Chase says.
She says many Māori skip local elections because in the past councils have been seen as pākeha-led with little interest in advancing Māori outcomes.