Informal poll puts Kirsten Wise out in front of Chris Tremain in Napier mayoralty race

320 to 340 people packed the Napier Boys' High School hall on Wednesday night to hear the city's mayoral candidates ask for their vote. Photo / Paul Taylor

An informal poll taken at a Hawke's Bay Today mayoral candidate meeting puts Kirsten Wise out in front in the early stages of the Napier mayoralty race.

About 320 to 340 people packed the Napier Boys' High School hall last night to hear Wise, Chris Tremain and Steve Gibson speak. David Hannay did not attend for health reasons.

About 320 "straw poll" voting forms were handed out at the meeting asking attendees to vote, based on the performances of the candidates on the night.

About 60 forms were not returned - 19 per cent of the 320 handed out.

Of the 261 votes handed in at the end of the night, Wise received 181, Chris Tremain 49, Steve Gibson 26 and David Hannay, 5.

"It's time to get back to basics and provide the community with what you've been asking for,'' says Kirsten Wise. Photo / Paul Taylor

Wise said she was thrilled and humbled by the results.

"I certainly won't be resting on my laurels, I will still be getting out there door-knocking and doing my 'pop-ups' right through until the end of the campaign period."

Tremain said he was disappointed with the poll, and it showed he was clearly the underdog.

"In saying this, I remind myself and the winder community town hall meetings tend to be the domain of left-wing activists and that even when I won Napier by 8600 votes I still lost the straw polls at these meetings."

Gibson said he wasn't reading to much into the poll and was not too bothered by the result.

Straw polls are informal polls, and are not classified as "scientific".

Organiser and Hawke's Bay Today editor Craig Cooper said the crowd was estimated at 320 to 340 by Napier Boys' High School staff, based on the seating provided.

"We handed out 320 voting forms, so we're reasonably happy that we have the crowd estimate right.

"Almost 20 per cent of the voting forms not being handed in is significant, but there is also a strong indication that Kirsten Wise, with 56 per cent of the vote, is in front of Chris Tremain (19 per cent) in the early stages.

Chris Tremain told the crowd "Water is my number one priority, should I be elected as your mayor." Photo / Paul Taylor

"The poll also suggests one in five voters didn't vote, which suggests that they couldn't make their mind up.

"But the only voting forms that truly count are the ones that start landing in Hawke's Bay letterboxes this Friday."

A randomly drawn speaking order saw Wise, Tremain and then Gibson address the crowd with their openings.

Wise said, after two terms as a councillor, she was excited at the prospect of becoming mayor.

"It's time to get back to basics and provide the community with what you've been asking for, clean drinking water, a pollution-free estuary, a library, and a pool which meets your needs."

As an accountant, she was aware of the financial pressure on many community members.
"Many members of our community are on fixed incomes, and we need to keep rates affordable."

Former Napier MP Tremain said, "water is my number one priority, should I be elected as your mayor."

"I've pledged to initiate a Mayoral Taskforce, whose mandate will be to expedite the process of cleaning our water pipes to restore water clarity to the network."

He said he was also committed to re-consulting on the new aquatic centre, currently proposed for Prebensen Drive.

He said he was not marred by the current "shenanigans" of the current council.

Former police officer Steve Gibson said he wanted to see a ban of gang patches in Napier. Photo / Paul Taylor

Former police officer Gibson said he wanted to see a ban of gang patches in Napier.

He also spoke about the Onekawa pool in his opening address, comparing it to a pool upgrade done in Feilding while he was a Manawatu District Councillor.

"Our council got bullied into adopting the Prebensen Drive (option) at $41 million, because they said it was going to cost $20m to upgrade and build a new learners' pool at Onekawa."

Hawke's Bay Today is also organising a meeting for Hastings candidates Damon Harvey and Sandra Hazlehurst, at 6pm at Karamu High School on Monday.

"Based on the Napier format, I think voters will be able to see Damon and Sandra in action for 45 minutes to an hour,'' Cooper said.

"The feedback we had from the Napier meeting, is that this is a great way to help make an informed decision."