Matthew French has been selected by local party members as National’s candidate in Taieri for the 2026 General Election.

Mr French has lived in the Taieri electorate for 20 years, working in hospitality management and in trust executive roles. Matthew is the current club captain of the Zingari-Richmond Rugby Football Club and serves on multiple other community trusts. He was National’s candidate in Taieri for the 2023 election.

“I am humbled to be selected as National’s candidate for Taieri, to help re-elect a National Government focused on fixing the basics and building the future,” says Mr French.

“National has ended the war on farmers. Unlike Labour, a National Government will not close down farms or send production overseas. Instead, we are backing our farmers.

“The National-led Government has signed new trade deals to increase exports and is scrapping the RMA, replacing it with a new planning system that will let farmers and growers get back to doing what they do best.

“These policies will pump billions of dollars into regional communities like those in Taieri, creating jobs, increasing wages, and lifting the quality of life for everyone across Otago.

“I believe that if you work hard and save for the future you deserve to get ahead. That is why I am proud of National’s policy to raise Kiwisaver contributions to 12 per cent total because it will mean that the average New Zealander could be hundreds of thousands of dollars better off when they retire.

“I’ll be working hard between now and November 7, meeting as many people as I can to re-elect a National Government and earn the right to represent Taieri as its next National MP.”

Biographical notes

Matthew French (45) is currently the Branch Manager at both the Dunedin and Invercargill branches of a New Zealand-wide will and trust provider. Before this role, Matthew worked in a range of hospitality management and trust executive roles.

Outside of work and politics Matthew is heavily involved in local community and sporting organisations, including club captain at Dunedin’s Zingari-Richmond Rugby Football Club and serves on the committees of Otago Metro Rugby, Wild Dunedin, and the Otago Welfare Guardian Trust.

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