Northland elections: Kaipara result confirmed, wait for rest of results

Jason Smith has been confirmed as being returned as Kaipara Mayor with a big majority, but other Northland election results are still pending.

Kaipara Mayor Jason Smith has been returned to the role, local body elections results confirm, but final results for the rest of Northland's local authorities are yet to be released.

Dr Smith held a big majority over the other mayoral contender Moemoea Mohoawhenua, a Māori activist, writer and filmmaker formerly named Benjamin Nathan, and the majority has been confirmed after official final results for the Kaipara were released yesterday.

But final results in the Whangārei and Far North district councils and Northland Regional Council had still not been released by edition time yesterday. The results may be released on the councils' websites over the weekend, but it seems more likely they will be released on Monday.

This will mean a nervous wait for two Northland Regional Council candidates - both were incumbent councillors, but one will now miss out.

After last Saturday's preliminary count, Bill Shepherd held a slim majority of 61 votes over Joce Yeoman in the Coastal North constituency. By Monday, after special votes were counted, that had switched to Yeoman having an even slimmer lead of only 14 votes.

Shepherd is an experienced, long-time local body politician who only a month ago was the council's chairman, while Yeoman is a one-term council member, first elected in 2016.

One result that was overturned from election night was in the Kaipara where Brian McEwing, a former Kaipara District councillor who held narrowly to the second seat for the Dargaville ward after Saturday's election, missed out after special votes were counted. McEwing misses out to incumbent Karen Joyce-Paki, who takes the second seat behind Eryn Wilson-Collins.

All the other election night results from the Kaipara remain the same.

The council will now comprise: Mayor: Dr Jason Smith; Kaiwaka-Mangawhai: Jonathan Larsen, Peter Wethey (both elected unopposed); Otamatea: Anna Curnow, Mark Vincent; Dargaville: Eryn Wilson-Collins, Karen Joyce-Paki; West Coast-Central: Victoria Del la Varis-Woodcock, David Wills.

A powhiri and inaugural meeting will start at 10am on October 25 at Dargaville Town Hall, with members of the community welcome. With special votes still to process, the final results were due to be announced on October 17, followed by the official declaration on October 21.

The inaugural meeting of the new KDC will be at Northern Wairoa War Memorial Hall, 37 Hokianga Rd, Dargaville, beginning with a pōwhiri at 10am on October 25.

There are not expected to be any other election-night results overturned in the other councils.