Election 2011: Central north goes true blue

Tauranga National Party MP Simon Bridges with his wife Natalie Bridges celebrate his win. Photo / Mark McKeown

Criticism of the Rena salvage was like oil off Simon Bridges' back last night as the National MP marched into a comfortable win in Tauranga.

Bridges, 35, said the Bay of Plenty had had a tough year with the Rena container ship disaster and diseased Kiwifruit crops but he expected great things for the future.

"There has been anger, emotion and grief over the Rena but I feel like now we are at a point where people are happy with the way Maritime New Zealand and the Government handled things," Bridges said.

News on Friday that a further 21 containers of undeclared hazardous waste had been discovered on the stricken ship had Bridges promising there would be an investigation.

"We will be looking into why these containers were not declared but I'll be doing what the experts say is the best thing to do."

Bridges was widely regarded as the party's pin-up boy, touted as a young gun, and in his earlier days faced off on breakfast telly each week against Labour's Jacinda Ardern. Bridges is now married with a baby boy expected in the new year.

Bridges also assured Bay of Plenty kiwifruit growers who are battling bacteria plagued vines, that they and their crops would be looked after.

"The kiwifruit issue was one I want to tackle for the medium term and one where National was providing ongoing support with a $50 million package to find scientific solutions to the package," Bridges said.

Outspoken labour candidate Deborah Mahuta-Coyle said Bridges had come under fire for being a no-show at pre-election debates.

Along with former weatherman and NZ First candidate Brendan Horan, Mana's Jayson Gardiner and Green Party's Ian McLean, Mahuta-Coyle fronted Bridges at his street-corner meeting and turned the speech into a debate. "We thought if he wasn't going to come to us we would go to him. It was pretty rowdy but it was in good fun," Mahuta-Coyle said.

While Bridges drew some criticism there was none of the animosity and name-calling seen in the Hamilton West seat.

Victorious National Party incumbent Tim Macindoe and Labour challenger Sue Maroney embarked on a heated campaign with name-calling and tension in the fight for Hamilton's most marginal seat.

Macindoe won the seat, admitting the campaign had turned nasty.

"It's a marginal seat so the tension reflects the tough competition. It was a different campaign I had against Martin Gallagher last election who I got along well with - it's fair to say I don't have that same relationship with Sue."

In Hamilton East the incumbent National MP David Bennett won and said he would continue to focus on improving links with Auckland and Tauranga.

Finishing the Waikato Expressway was a priority and there would be continued investment in transport, broadband and improvements around the hospital he said.

National MP Lindsay Tisch was re-elected in the Waikato electorate while National's Tony Ryall spread more blue in the Bay of Plenty electorate.

Popular Labour MP Nanaia Mahuta was the only ray of red sunshine in the region taking out the Hauraki-Waikato electorate.

The mother of 2-year-old Waiwaia Mahuta said Maori youth unemployment and the cost of living were issues she wanted to continue tackling.

"With 73 per cent of people in this electorate earning $40,000 or less National has done nothing for them. I want to focus on making things better for my constituents."

National MP Mike Sabin's victory in Northland topped off an emotional year for the ex-policeman who replaced veteran John Carter last year.

The former cop and anti-P campaigner said the best way improve Northland was to be at the table when decisions were being made.