She said the collective did not see that having a Maori ward was likely to cause separatism. "We are trying to keep this as positive as possible."
Ms Duncan said raising the 5 per cent of signatures was achievable. She agreed that if they succeeded in forcing a referendum, the response might be bigger than for council elections. The council had made a lot of assumptions that having a Maori ward would create divisions but those divisions had been around in Tauranga for a long time.
"I have been getting a lot of encouragement from non-Maori," she said.
The collective was drafting the petition for a referendum and it had until February 28 next year to achieve the 5 per cent.
Tauranga City Council member Gail McIntosh said the collective had made a bad decision. "I think it is a backward step. That's my take on it."
Even if the collective reached the 5 per cent threshold needed for a referendum, the answer would come back overwhelmingly 'no', she said.
Cr McIntosh said the public did not want a Maori ward and she was surprised at how annoyed the collective had been at the 9-0 council decision against the ward.
"We are reflecting the views of the total community, and that is for one person, one vote.
"I am surprised they are doing it. I don't think they are reading their own community very well. The vast majority of the whole community are against it."