Hilda Halkyard-Harawira says she’s still coming to terms with winning a place on the Far North District Council.
But the veteran Māori rights and education advocate she’s keen to get on with issues that she campaigned on, including housing and a greater say for Māori on the council.
“It’s exciting because in Taitokerau for the first time we’ve got four seats available for Māori wards which is quite a significant number and some people are saying four too many, but we’re saying we’re 55 percent of the population, we should have five seats actually,” she says.
Hilda Halkyard-Harawira says if the final count on Friday confirms Moko Tepania as Far North mayor, that means Māori in five of the 11 seats around the table.
