Four of the Māori seats are a resounding victory for Te Pāti Māori, two are neck and neck and only one seat was a convincing win for Labour
Labour has not only lost the election, it has also lost the majority of the Māori seats to Te Pāti Māori. Four of the Māori seats are a resounding victory for Te Pāti Māori, two are slim victories to incumbent Labour MPs and only one seat was a convincing win for Labour.
Co-leaders Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi have taken the Te Tai Hauāuru and Waiariki seats by huge margins while Te Tai Tonga and Hauraki-Waikato seats have flipped to Te Pāti Māori’s column. The result is a blow to Nanaia Mahuta, losing the Hauraki-Waikato seat to 20-year-old Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke - parliament's youngest ever MP - by over 1300 votes. Te Pāti Māori candidate Takuta Ferris beat Labour's Rino Tirikatene in the South Island Te Tai Tonga electorate by a similar margin.
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Labour’s senior ministers Kelvin Davis and Peeni Henare have only just squeaked home in Te Tai Tokerau and Tāmaki Makaurau seats respectively with margins of less than 500 votes. Ironically, newcomer Cushla Tangaere-Manuel will comfortably take the Ikaroa Rawhiti for Labour ahead of Meka Whaitiri, who defected to Te Pāti Māori from Labour earlier this year.
The sweep by Te Pāti Māori could have a number of implications – depending on the final count of special votes, Kelvin Davis and Peeni Henare are still at risk of losing.
The result in the electorate seats for Te Pāti Māori surpasses their party vote, which could cause an overhang in parliament which could have a bearing on the calculations for coalition arrangements. If an overhang occurs it will mean Winston Peters and NZ First will be in opposition.
Te Pāti co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said she was overwhelmed but not entirely surprised. She said in her travels around the country and her electorate she sensed there was a sense of frustration among Māori voters.
“I’m not really surprised given what Rawiri and I were hearing on the ground. People have had enough, and the fact that senior ministers are getting a run for their money shows how frustrated people are.
“We need transformation. We’re at the bottom of every cliff we don’t want to be at the bottom of. We know we’ve got solutions.”
She also said the vote reflected Māori voters looking for representatives who will stand up to the racism coming from parties on the right.
“They want someone who will stand up against the absolute bigotry and discrimination. I just think people have had enough of the hatred and negativity and no solutions coming forward.”
In her victory speech to jubilant supporters in Hawera she said she had received a congratulatory call from the incumbent, Adrian Rurawhe. She paid tribute to the other candidates, Soraya Peke-Mason for Labour and Harete Hipango from National.
"Thank you to Soraya and Harete for the way they represented their communities, the way they held themselves with dignity and mana and I respect all their whanau. For us tomorrow is a new dawn for Te Pati Maori. We’re on the rise."
"We showed that you can do things in a mana-enhancing way. We showed that you don’t have to be downright dirty. We showed that when you put something up against us and tell us we’re not worthy, you’re going to take us out, you’re going to take away our Maori Health Authority, you call us bottom-feeders, you call us separatists, you call us apartheid, we’re going to stand up and rise."
"We’re standing here on the edge of making history and for Te Pati Maori our biggest success was everyone told us we couldn’t do something and us as the little people have proved them wrong and we’re really happy to be team underdog. What got us here is out people, is you all and power of the voting spirit and to come together as whanaunga. I’m beyond thrilled to be here as you new member of parliament for Te Tai Hauauru. This win is just as much mine as it is yours. It’s ours."
"It just shows you’ve got to keep trying. If you believe in a kaupapa, don’t give up."
She said the result would mean they could be an effective opposition party against a government that had been negative towards Māori.
"We’ve got a big game ahead of us. We’ve got a government that doesn’t perceive our value as tangata whenua. I take on the honour you’ve bestowed on me as your candidate and as co-leader. We know we have a big fight up against this new government."
"We stand for unity. If te Tiriti had of been honoured, unity is what we would have achieved. Our natural development was interfered with. That’s what our tupuna wanted. They never wanted us to hate despite what happened to us. Our party is about uniting strengths and kotahitanga. I just want to say if you didn’t vote for me, that’s OK. I’ll still look after you and represent you. Because that’s what manaaki is. That’s what my iwi, my hapu, my pa taught me. It’s about manaakitanga."
Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere said the polls were proven wrong again but he said a lot of that was due to younger voters.
"I think a number of the polls have come up shy. If you look at our seats, the only seat polled and our favour was Waiariki. Takuta was 11 percentage points behind Tirikatene on those Maori TV polls. We are unsurprised because of the energy on the ground. We struggle in the over 50s, the DNA is sort of bonded. But 18 to 25s are out the gate, 25 to 35s are there and we just have to split the other cohorts."
He said this generational shift is also evident in the Pākehā voters.
"The biggest voter cohort in the country is 900,000 Pakeha over the age of 50. Their children and their grandchildren see a different society to the parents and grandparents. They aren't as deeply wanting us to all be one, and what one means is that we're gonna be like Pākehā. They have a totally different appreciation."
He said the offshore votes could still shift the results in the close seats.
"I don't know how many offshore votes have been cast and the offshore votes got Debbie in last election. It came right down to the cut."
Tamihere says he expects the tone will shift because of the results.
"Winston will change his colors as usual," he says with a laugh.
"He'll be batting on our side against the Tories. Winston garnered that Pakeha vote, it got sucked up by him. He's really good at looking at the disenchanted, pitching to them every election. And the suckers go for him because they hate him less than they hate the rest."
"I think wiser the heads will prevail around Seymour's ugliness over treaty-related matters because if you try and dial the clock back, ... there will be significant social unrest and I just think wiser heads will have to prevail."
