The "very unusual" case of a Northlander who stood and campaigned for the Far North mayoralty while awaiting sentence on serious criminal charges does not necessitate changes to the Local Government and Electoral Acts, the Government has signalled.
Reacting to the sentence of Allan Titford on sex and violence charges last week after he was earlier convicted by a jury, Local Government Minister Chris Tremain said a host of factors such as timing of the trial and continued name suppression meant Titford could contest the election.
However, although he is convinced the status quo should remain, Mr Tremain has not completely ruled out changes to both the Local Government Act and the Electoral Act.
"Under the Local Government Act, there's a clause that if you're convicted of a crime punishable by two years or more, you are ousted from office," he said.
"Where it becomes confusing is under the Electoral Act, all adults who qualify as citizens or permanent residents to be registered as electors and stand for office are able to run for office up until the point they are sentenced."
Although the Local Government Act overshadows the Electoral Act, Mr Tremain said Titford's "highly unusual" situation called for a closer look at both acts and whether they should be better aligned.
Titford received 414 votes, the lowest among all seven mayoral candidates.
Name suppression meant the Northern Advocate could not disclose the criminal charges he faced before and during the local government elections and, as such, voters could all but wonder why he was not publicly campaigning.
"This was a highly unusual situation where someone had decided to contest, he was convicted but had name suppression in place until after the election," the minister said.
"I am not convinced there's enough incidents as such that warrants a law change," he said.
Titford was sent to jail by the Whangarei District Court for 24 years, with no minimum non-parole period - the highest sentence ever handed down by Northland courts - for perpetrating a "reign of terror" on his wife and children for more than two decades.