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Election season kicks off: Billboards of political parties go up in Napier
New Zealand's election season has begun and the billboards are out - the two biggest parties have lined the streets of Napier with signs to persuade voters.
In central Napier this morning, National leader Todd Muller rolled out the party's first campaign billboard, featuring him and deputy leader Nikki Kaye.
The slogan reads: "Strong Team. More Jobs. Better Economy."
Muller said the slogan "talks directly to the choice that sits in front of this country on September 19".
"We have a phenomenal team - 55 talented individuals that have lived experiences such as this in Hawke's Bay who know how to run businesses, who know how to recover from what will be an acute economic crisis that's already unfolding in New Zealand.
"Jobs will be at the core of this election campaign, it won't be the speeches in front of the flag in the middle of Covid-19.
"We will, through our plan, ensure that we have a better economy that will not only benefit Hawke's Bay but the wider country."
The poster is strikingly similar to Labour's 'fresh approach' billboard under Andrew Little's leadership, featuring both the leader and deputy leader because of Jacinda Ardern's appeal.
When asked if Kaye was on the sign because he needed her support, Muller said she had "a fantastic smile - better than my smile according to my kids".
"We're a team, that's one of the messages that sit in our slogan. It's the difference in this government ... three reasonable performers and 17 empty chairs."
Muller was in Hawke's Bay on Thursday and Friday, holding public meetings at Maraekakaho in rural Hastings and Havelock North.
There were no policy announcements but Muller said policy would "reveal itself in time".
"I know the media want to have it revealed at a timeframe that works for them, we'll reveal it when it works for us, when the focus of the country is on it."
Just around the corner, a Labour election hoarding was tucked up a street towards Napier Hill.
It advertised both an electoral vote for Stuart Nash and party vote for Labour, featuring both Nash and Labour leader Jacinda Ardern.
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