Larry Baldock has withdrawn his nomination as Tauranga's candidate for the Conservative Party after falling out with the party's leadership over its "one law to rule us all" policy.
Surprise that party leader Colin Craig failed to name a candidate for Tauranga during his visit to the city this week led to the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend seeking an explanation from Mr Baldock, who was widely expected to stand.
Mr Baldock revealed that he wrote to Mr Craig and the party's board on May 30 to say that if such policies were part of the Conservative Party's top election policies, he would withdraw his candidacy.
The "one law" policy created a conflict of conscience for him because he opposed getting rid of the Maori seats and removing references to the Treaty of Waitangi from legislation.
His disclosure followed Act's Guy McCallum quitting as the Dunedin North candidate, citing a "fundamental disagreement" with leader Dr Jamie Whyte over race relations. Dr Whyte sparked controversy in a speech last week in which he likened Maori to pre-revolutionary French aristocracy, and vowed to repeal "all race-based laws".