Experience rewarded in election

It seems a steady hand on the tiller was wanted by the majority of Hibiscus Coast voters.

Both long standing Albany Ward councillors, and Hibiscus Coast residents John Watson and Wayne Walker held their posts by a strong majority.

Among the Auckland Councillors, only Orakei Ward councillor Desley Simpson attained more votes than Watson’s 20,367, and Walker’s 19,798 votes put him in the fourth highest polling position. In Rodney, Greg Sayers comfortably retained his seat.

In her first time standing for Albany Ward, Victoria Short (former Hibiscus & Bays Local Board deputy chair), attracted 14,804 votes, coming in behind Walker. She was returned to the Bays subdivision of the local board.

Hibiscus Coast residents vote for four members on the Hibiscus Coast subdivision of the local board, and here Gary Brown (last term’s chair) polled highest. Leanne Willis was also returned to the board.

Two new members were elected – Sam Mills and Jake Law. Mills stood on the Coast People ticket with Brown and Willis (and former member Andy Dunn who lost his seat). Law was with Team Coast.

For Law, it was a nerve wracking few days, as early results saw Nicholas Mitchell taking the fourth local board spot ahead of him by less than 50 votes.

However, preliminary figures released on October 10 reversed those fortunes and gave Law the seat, by a margin of around 170 votes.

The 29-year-old teacher, grandson of former Rodney Mayor John Law, says he hopes to be an energetic, positive, involved and active representative. 

He is looking forward to collaborating with the other members, particularly on environmental issues such as mitigation of the effects of climate change and clean water.

He found the number of votes humbling and heart-warming, and says he is “gutted” for the other three members of Team Coast – Lia Shelford, Kereama and Trish Nathan.

It will be 34-year-old lawyer Mills’ first time in politics. He campaigned particularly hard on supporting local youth initiatives.

Note: These results are based on the preliminary figures. The final count, which includes all votes including specials, were published on October 15, after this paper went to print.

Voting numbers nothing to be proud of: Once again, the Rodney and Hibiscus & Bays Local Board areas were among the highest for voter turnout in Auckland, although the figures are still low. • The turnout for the Hibiscus subdivision of the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board was 42 percent – fifth highest of the 21 local boards. This is just one percent higher than in the 2019 election. • Voting in the Warkworth subdivision of the Rodney Local Board was second highest at 51.9 percent (41 percent for the Dairy Flat part of the Rodney Local Board). • Nationwide, the turnout is 36 percent, but Local Government NZ expected this to change in the final count. • Local Government NZ wants to see these figures improve and is asking for an independent review of things like communication and the practicality of postal voting in the hope of better numbers in 2025.