Northland’s Big Battlegrounds: 17 Fight For Three Council Spots

Sunday, 10 August 2025, 5:16 am
Article: Susan Botting - Local Democracy Reporter

Northland's Bay of Islands-Whangaroa voters will be spoilt for choice at the coming elections.

There will be six times more local election candidates than seats in the area’s district and regional council.

Seventeen candidates will be duking it out for three seats: A dozen are fighting for Far North District Council (FNDC)’s two Bay of Islands-Whangaroa general ward positions while six candidates are contesting the single seat in Northland Regional Council (NRC)’s Bay of Islands-Whangaroa general constituency.

They’re against a backdrop of the region's overall three times more nominations than councillor/mayor positions.

They are among 165 nominations for 62 political positions - three Mayors, 40 councillors and 19 community board members – with eventually a regional council chair.

Northland’s next most intense election battle is in another FNDC electoral area - Te Hiku general ward.

Nine people have put their hats into the ring for its two seats, including prominent Kāitāia businessman and winemaker Monty Knight.

Close behind, Kaipara District Council (KDC)’s new Wairoa general ward has 4.3 times more candidates than its three positions.

Meanwhile, Whangārei District Council (WDC)’s Hikurangi coastal general ward and KDC’s Otamatea general ward have 3.5 times more candidates than their two positions. WDC’s Whangārei urban general ward has 3.4 times more, and the council’s Bream Bay and Whangārei Heads general wards 3 times more.

These areas are among the North’s 34 electoral areas, all of which have more contenders than positions available.

NRC’s Mid North general constituency is the sole councillor exception where the council’s current chair Geoff Crawford will be elected unopposed.

Nominations for the 2025 local elections closed on Friday 1 August .

NORTHLAND MAYORAL RACE

Eleven people want to be a mayor in Northland. Five are fighting for the Whangārei mayoralty, four for the Kaipara mayoralty and three for the Far North mayoralty.

Whangārei’s mayoralty is the most hotly contested in the region, between sitting Mayor Vince Cocurullo and councillors Ken Couper and Marie Olsen, and Brad Flower and Fiona Green.

Kaipara’s former Mayor Dr Jason Smith has thrown his hat in the ring after departing in 2022.

Current Deputy Mayor Jonathan Larsen, councillor Ash Nayyar and newcomer Snow Tane are also running.

The Far North's mayoral hopefuls are sitting Mayor Moko Tepania, former Deputy Mayor and current councillor Ann Court and Joshua Riley.

Tepania and Court went neck and neck in the 2022 local election Mayoral race.

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE RUNNING?

Northland results show 165 candidates contesting 62 positions in the region’s elections.

The 132 nominees standing as councillors or Mayors for 43 positions make up 80% of nominations.

The balance of 33 nominations is seeking the Far North’s 19 community board roles.

One Northland by-election is potentially on the cards.

FNDC’s Te Hiku community board incumbent Bill Subritzky is the sole candidate in the Whatuwhiwhi subdivision but has also thrown his hat into the ring to be a councillor in the council’s Te HIku general ward.

Current Kaikohe-Hokianga community board chair Chicky Rudkin and Bay of Islands-Whangaroa community board member Tyler Ian Bamber are also tilting at a councillor position, as well as returning to their current boards.

October’s election will see just a handful of departures from the ranks of Northland’s 44 sitting councillors.

Most notably is Northland’s longest-serving current local politician. Whangārei’s Deputy Mayor Phil Halse (75) is not seeking re-election, after 33 consecutive years in local politics since 1992, and 11 council terms.

In contrast longtimer FNDC’s Ann Court is staying on, standing for her tenth local government term.

She is part of a trio standing on FNDC’s first team election plank, which also includes Bamber and newcomer Shell Wilson combining on local governance.

Court is stepping into a second Far North Mayoral contest against incumbent Tepania, after the pair’s close-fought 2022 election battle that saw her narrowly nudged out of the top position at the eleventh hour.

Whangārei’s Chrichton Christie is having another tilt at getting back into the WDC political arena as a councillor, following a lengthy previous period in that role.

Meanwhile, Northland’s eight Māori ward councillors - whose three electoral areas are continuing for at least 2025-2028 - are standing for a second term.

They are among 14 Māori ward candidates for seven jobs - NRC topping the competition numbers with four Te Raki Māori ward candidates, including newcomer and former Waitangi National Trust chairman Pita Tipene, contesting 2 positions.

FNDC’s Ngā Tai o Tokerau Māori ward has seven vying for four positions while WDC’s Whangārei District Māori ward has three candidates seeking two positions.

These electoral areas and their councillors face a potentially uncertain future as communities are polled on whether these wards should survive beyond 2028.

KDC’s Te Moananui o Kaipara Māori ward will end at the October elections after the council canned the electoral area in August 2024.

Northland’s 165 local government candidates are standing to serve a vast range of communities across the region’s 200,000 people and 12,548 square kilometres, from Cape Reinga in the north to around Kaiwaka in the south.

Their confirmed nominations are out this month ahead of the elections on October 11.

-LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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