Competition is hot for Whanganui seat
‘‘I think we have a good shot, I think it is winnable.’’
Contenders for the Whanganui electorate seat are already lining up, seven months out from the 2017 general election.
National MP Chester Borrows will stand down ahead of the September 23 election, leaving the seat, which has been a National stronghold for 12 years, open. National, Labour, the Green Party and NZ First are all keen to contest the seat but only Labour has so far announced a candidate.
Steph Lewis, who was selected last week, said she was confident about her chances.
‘‘I think we have a good shot, I think it is winnable. Whanganui was a Labour seat for 64 of the past 82 years and there have been only three National MPs to hold that seat and Chester Borrows was the only one to hold it for more than one term.’’
Lewis grew up in Whanganui and Waverley and retains strong family ties to both regions.
She has a background in employment advocacy and dispute resolution and works for the Privacy Commission, experience that would help her as an electorate MP, she said. At present based in Wellington, Lewis said she would move back to Whanganui in June when she began campaigning fulltime.
National’s candidate would be chosen on March 26, following a month-long marathon of meetings, interviews and speeches.
Seven candidates have been whittled down to four, who were undergoing a gruelling selection process designed to find the best person, acting chairman of the Whanganui electorate, Neil Walker, Hawera, said.
‘‘The intention is to put the candidates through quite a rigorous selection and come up with somebody who can really cut the mustard,’’ he said. ’’It’s a good practice for what they might have to front up to in September, they’re having to knock on doors, try to persuade people to support them, stand on the stump and answer questions.’’
Te Kiri farmer Warwick Fleming, 26, is the only Taranaki resident seeking the National nomination. The other contenders are dentist Hadleigh Reid, who is a Whanganui District Councillor, lawyer Harete Hipango, who is a Whanganui District Health Board member, and Andy Jarden, former manager of the Wanganui Chronicle.
The candidate would be chosen by votes from 60 delegates at a meeting in Whanganui, Walker said.