The 2022 Hastings District Council election was a local election held from 15 September to 8 October in the Hastings District of New Zealand as part of that year's nation-wide local elections. Voters elected the mayor of Hastings and 15 district councillors for the 2022–2025 term of the Hastings District Council. Postal voting and the first-past-the-post voting system were used.
Key dates Key dates relating to the local election were as follows: +15 JulyCandidate nominations opened12 AugustCandidate nominations closed and electoral roll closed17 AugustCandidates announced16–18 SeptemberVoting papers sent out16 September–8 OctoberVoting opened8 OctoberElection day - voting closed at noon. Preliminary results released13 OctoberOfficial results released
Background
Representation Following the representation review, the suburb of Flaxmere lost one of its two council seats. Some residents of the suburb were not happy about this; one resident told Hawke's Bay Today that "I think Flaxmere is actually growing, so it should probably be more".
Campaign
Unopposed contests Many wards, particularly those in rural areas, saw their elections uncontested as the number of candidates was equal to the number of vacancies. One resident of rural Hastings told Hawke's Bay Today that it was a "shame", referring to the mayoral race, regional council race, and district council races in his area all being uncontested.
Flaxmere general ward One resident of Flaxmere told Hawke's Bay Today said that it was "nice to see" Pasifika and Māori candidates standing for the ward.
Hastings-Havelock North general ward
Incumbents Incumbent councillors Malcolm Dixon, Damon Harvey, Eileen Lawson, and Simon Nixon ran for re-election.
Dixon pointed to his 4 decades in education and his involvement with various community interest boards and trusts as a reason voters should elect him. Dixon said he was running to give back to the community. He listed the diversity and vibrancy of the ward as a reason he thought it was special. His most important issues was people struggling in the community, including the homeless. He said the council should open up land to increase housing, though not at the cost of the Heretaunga Plains but rather densification. He said that councils should put pressure on central government to help create pathways for youth that end up on the dole.
Harvey told the New Zealand Herald that people should vote for him because of his connections to the community that he's developed over 20 years of working in the city as a businessman and through running his business magazine. He said he had lived in both Flaxmere and Havelock North, and that he loved how diverse the city had become. He said a key issue was balancing the tension between housing people and avoiding encroaching on the fertile plains that surround the city; he supported building apartments. He said that the food industry and the youth of the district were important to invest into.
Lawson said she was a "really experienced" councillor and that people should vote for her because she could think "strategically" and "practically". She was running again because she had more work to do, saying that the city was improving and that she was excited about that. She said that looking after the environment whilst managing economic growth was an important issue and that working on youth employment and education was important for the region's industry. Ensuring good housing in the district was important for her and working on opportunities and education for the youth of the district was her top priority.
Nixon said people should vote for him because he had trained as an economist and had had "quite" senior jobs at several large companies. He had been an orchardist and a local business owner as well, so he had a breadth of experience in his view. He was running again because he thought he could make a "real" difference. He said that the ward was special because it "dominates" the district and the wider Hawke's Bay region in terms of population and commercial activity. He pointed to Three Waters as a big issue because he thought it would cost the council a lot. He said he was not "totally convinced" about the climate issue but that the council should do something; public transport needed to be improved as part of this (though public transport is a regional council issue). Rates increases were a big issue for him.
Other candidates Other candidates included Rizwaana Latiff, Gilly Lawrence, and Rion Roben.
Latiff was a nurse, midwife, and community volunteer who moved to New Zealand in 2000 from South Africa; she also ran in 2019 where she placed 9th. She lived in Mahora and praised the ward for its diversity in terms of ethnicity and age. She said the biggest issues facing the ward were housing and climate change. She said she had experience working with the council and central government.
Lawrence was a photography and film lighting specialist, the chairperson of the Eastern Screen Alliance. He said he was not very special, that he was not a politician, and that people should vote for him to bring a different voice. He grew up in Waimārama but had moved to Auckland for work; he later moved back to Hawke's Bay 18 years prior to the election. He said he was running because it was new to him and it was out of his comfort zone and that it was exciting and challenging to learn all about interacting with the community. He said creating opportunities for young people was the ward's biggest issue, along with safe and affordable housing. Ensuring water safety was important for him as well as the cost of living.
Roben, who liked playing board games, was running to bring a different voice to the council, one representative of working families rather than business. He had run in a previous election but did not win. He praised the economic growth and diversity of the ward and was concerned most about water issues, saying he supported some of the proposals of the Three Waters reforms but had concerns around the roll out. He said he wanted to improve the nightlife in the city, and that cost of living was a key issue. He supported funds going towards artists local to the region and he wanted to improve parks in the district.
Vaccinations Harvey, Lawson, and Roben said they had been vaccinated against COVID-19 and were pro-vaccine. Gilly Lawrence said he had been vaccinated but that he was pro-choice on the issue.
Māori wards Dixon was in favour of Māori wards.
List of candidates
Incumbents not seeking re-election
Mayor + CandidatePhotoAffiliationNotesSandra HazlehurstNoneIncumbent mayor
Councillors
Flaxmere general ward +CandidateAffiliationNotesVictoria Fuata'iNoneHenry HekeNoneMichael NgahukaMike for FlaxmereMarcelle RahekeNone
Hastings/Havelock North general ward +CandidatePhotoAffiliationNotesSayeed AhmedNoneAlex CameronPeople and place - He tāngata, he wāhiMalcolm DixonNoneIncumbent councillor, former principal of Frimley Primary.Michael FowlerNoneDamon HarveyNoneLocal business owner and incumbent councillor.Rizwaana LatiffNoneNurse and midwife who also ran in 2019.Gilly LawrenceNonePhotography and lighting specialist.Eileen LawsonNoneIncumbent councillor.Simon NixonNoneIncumbent councillor.Melanie PetrowskiNoneKim PriestNoneRion RobenNoneBoard game enjoyer, had previously ran for election.Wendy SchollumDelivering housing and employmentKevin WatkinsNone
Heretaunga general ward +CandidateAffiliationNotesAlwyn CorbanNoneAnn RedstoneNone
Kahurānaki general ward +CandidatePhotoAffiliationNotesMarcus BuddoNoneJohn RoilA strong voice for Kahuranaki
Mōhaka general ward +CandidateAffiliationNotesTania KerrNone
Takitimu Māori ward +CandidateAffiliationNotesDallas AdamsNoneAna ApatuNoneHohepa CooperNoneKiri GoodspeedNoneSarah Greening-SmithIndependentKellie JessupConsult, Create & ExecuteRenata NepeTe Pāti Māori
Rural community board members
Poukawa community subdivision +CandidateAffiliationNotesLilly LawsonNoneVicki ScoularNone
Tūtira community subdivision +CandidateAffiliationNotesAbby MorleyNone
Kaweka community subdivision +CandidateAffiliationNotesIsabelle CrawshawNone
Maraekākaho community subdivision +CandidateAffiliationNotesJonathan StockleyNone
Flaxmere licensing trustees +CandidateAffiliationNotesMartha GreeningNoneChrissy HokiangaNoneBronwen HopkinsNoneWarwick HowieNoneFarley KeenanNoneBert LincolnNone
Results
Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst was re-elected unopposed. AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Sandra Hazlehurst unopposed
Council
Summary There were six new councillors elected and nine incumbent councillors re-elected. ElectorateIncumbentElectedFlaxmereHenare O'Keefe (Ind.)Henry Heke (Ind.)Peleti Oli (Labour)abolishedHastings-Havelock North general ward Malcolm Dixon (Ind.) Damon Harvey (Ind.) Eileen Lawson (Ind.) Simon Nixon (Ind.) Wendy Schollum (Ind.) Kevin Watkins (Ind.) Bayden Barber (Ind.) Michael Fowler (Ind.)Geraldine Travers (Ind.)abolishedHeretaunga general ward Alwyn Corban (Ind.) Ann Redstone (Ind.)Kahuranāki general wardSophie Siers (Ind.)Marcus Buddo (Ind.) Mōhaka general ward Tania Kerr (Ind.)Takitimu Māori wardnewAna Apatu (Ind.)newKellie Jessup (Ind.)newRenate Nepe (TPM)
Flaxmere general ward Henry Heke was elected defeating second-place Michael Ngahuka. +AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Henry Heke 376 40.69 Mike for Flaxmere Michael Ngahuka 279 30.19 None Marcelle Raheke 156 16.88 None Victoria Fuata'i 85 9.20Informal 7 0.76Blank 21 2.27Turnout 924
Hastings-Havelock general ward Eileen Lawson was re-elected, topping the poll. Wendy Schollum, Malcolm Dixon, Kevin Watkins, Damon Harvey, and Simon Nixon were also re-elected. Michael Fowler was the sole newly-elected councilor from the ward. +AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Eileen Lawson 7,135 62.05 Delivering housing and employment Wendy Schollum 7,027 61.11 None Malcolm Dixon 6,530 56.79 None Michael Fowler 6,508 56.60 None Kevin Watkins 6,086 52.93 None Damon Harvey 5,234 45.52 None Simon Nixon 4,749 41.30 None Rizwaana Latiff3,585 31.18 None Melanie Petrowski3,221 28.01 None Gilly Lawrence2,614 22.73 None Rion Roben2,601 22.62 People and place - He tāngata,he wāhi Alex Cameron2,422 21.06 None Sayeed Ahmed2,187 19.02 None Kim Priest2,140 18.61Informal24 0.21Blank56 0.49Turnout 11,498
Heretaunga general ward Alwyn Corban and Ann Redstone were re-elected unopposed. AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Alwyn Corban unopposed None Ann Redstone unopposed
Kahurānaki general ward Incumbent rural community board member Marcus Buddo defeated John Roil. +AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Marcus Buddo 882 55.72 A Strong Voice for Kahuranaki John Roil 687 43.34Informal 0 0.00Blank 14 0.88Turnout 1,583
Mōhaka general ward Tania Kerr was re-elected unopposed. AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Tania Kerr unopposed
Takitimu Māori ward Ana Apatu topped the poll as a newly elected councillor in the new Māori ward. Kellie Jessup and Renata Nepe were also newly-elected. +AffiliationCandidateVotes% None Ana Apatu 963 60.15 Consult, Create & Execute Kellie Jessup 776 48.47 Te Pāti Māori Renata Nepe 666 41.60 None Dallas Adams 549 34.29 Independent Sarah Greening-Smith 438 27.36 None Kiri Goodspeed 388 24.23 None Hohepa Cooper 318 19.86Informal 0 0.00Blank 0 0.00Turnout 1,601
Rural community board
Summary +ElectorateIncumbentElected Kaweka community subdivisionNick Dawson (Ind.)Isabelle Crawshaw (Ind.) Maraekākaho community subdivisionJonathan Stockley (Ind.) Poukawa community subdivisionMarcus Buddo (Ind.)Vicki Scoular (Ind.) Tūtira community subdivisionSue Maxwell (Ind.)Abby Morley (Ind.) Mōhaka general wardTania Kerr (Ind.) Kahurānaki general wardSophie Siers (Ind.)Marcus Buddo (Ind.)Takitimu Māori wardnewAna Apatu (Ind.)
Poukawa community subdivision Vicki Scoular defeated Lilly Lawson to be elected as the community board member for the Poukawa community.