New councillor an impressive addition

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Gisborne city residents have voted overwhelmingly for youth, financial acumen and an impressive all-round candidate in the form of Isaac Hughes, our newest councillor who becomes the youngest ever — not only for Gisborne District Council but the various other councils that proceeded the 1989 amalgamation.

Aged 27, Hughes is a lot younger than the previous youngest cohorts The Herald can identify — Judie Allum was 32 when first elected to the city council in 1980, while John Heikell was 34 when he joined in 1974 and Josh Wharehinga was also 34 when he won the last city ward by-election in 2014.

Our newest, youngest councillor blitzed the eight-strong field, gaining 2598 votes — 32 percent of votes cast and more than double the 1284 votes for second-placed Nick Tupara; who was also the highest-polling city-ward candidate to miss out on becoming a councillor at the 2019 election (which many people felt should have meant he would replace Amber Dunn when she resigned 10 months after the election).

Turnout for the by-election was 32.28 percent of the 24,761 eligible electors — slightly up on the 31.2 percent turnout for the 2014 by-election triggered by the resignation of Manu Caddie.

Turnout for by-elections does tend to be low as there is less at stake than in the three-yearly elections, when Gisborne’s city ward voters get to elect nine councillors as well as take part in electing the mayor and district health board members.

The 2019 local body election in this district had a turnout of 49.2 percent, which compared favourably to the nationwide voter turnout that election cycle of 41.7 percent.

Gisborne District Council lost a scientist with Dunn’s resignation, and has now gained a chartered accountant who speaks te reo Maori and is heavily involved in the community and sport, including as a rugby referee and chairman of both the Poverty Bay Cricket Association and Swim For Life Tairawhiti.

In pitching for votes Hughes ran an old-school campaign, beating the street and meeting hundreds of people (as well as weeding a scruffy city roundabout). He told The Herald in September that his core principles as a councillor will be:

Transparency — every decision made and vote cast will be communicated.

Efficiency — the council is a vehicle, a means to an end. Rates are paid to receive core services. It is vital these services are prioritised and provided efficiently.

Sustainability — our natural environment is a key selling point.