Independent Te Tai Tokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi is taking her newly registered Te Tai Tokerau Party into the 2026 election, positioning the movement around tino rangatiratanga, stronger local decision-making and the wellbeing of tamariki and mokopuna.
Kapa-Kingi launched the party following her departure from Te Pāti Māori earlier this year. Parliament currently records her as the Independent MP for Te Tai Tokerau, while the new party is campaigning separately in the November election.
The party says its kaupapa places whānau and future generations at the centre of decision-making, with policies spanning Māori health, housing on whenua Māori, climate resilience, local economic development and strengthening iwi and hapū authority over environmental decisions.
Tino rangatiratanga is also central to the platform, with the party campaigning for stronger protection of He Whakaputanga and Te Tiriti, alongside greater decision-making power for whānau, hapū, iwi and local communities.
The new movement adds another dimension to the contest for Te Tai Tokerau, where Kapa-Kingi won the electorate by 517 votes in 2023. Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and Te Tai Tokerau Party all have candidates contesting the seat this election.
Kapa-Kingi joins Ata Tū on Radio Waatea to discuss why she established the party, how it intends to campaign and what its kaupapa could mean for whānau in Te Tai Tokerau and across Aotearoa.
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