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Election 2020: Labour's McAnulty claims Wairarapa from National

2 minutes to read

Kieran McAnulty has helped Labour turn a traditionally blue National seat to red.

Hawkes Bay Today
By: Shannon Johnstone

Labour has grabbed the Wairarapa electorate seat from National.

Labour list MP Kieran McAnulty (19519) ended election night with a comprehensive 5411 margin over National candidate Mike Butterick (14108).

The Labour Party also took 47.4 per cent of the party vote, reversing the 2017 result which saw National dominate the seat.

The result was one of several reversals of recent political history, as Labour swept into several National strongholds across the country.

Kieran McAnulty has helped Labour turn a traditionally Blue National seat to Red.
Kieran McAnulty has helped Labour turn a traditionally Blue National seat to Red.

Earlier in the evening, speaking to TVNZ, McAnulty said when "having a yarn" to 11,000 people during the campaign it had "always been very positive."

"In the back of my mind I just kept thinking ... it does actually reflect the feedback I'm hearing but every candidate says they're getting good feedback on the ground so you don't want to get too excited.

"If this carries on, I'd be absolutely stoked, it'd mean the world to me."

Kieran McAnulty has helped Labour turn a traditionally Blue National seat to Red.
Kieran McAnulty has helped Labour turn a traditionally Blue National seat to Red.

National selected new candidate Mike Butterick to fight for the seat previously held by retiring National MP Alastair Scott less than five months ago.

Butterick said "We've tried to do the best we could in the time we had.

"Not many people will get the experience that I've been fortunate enough to have which is to have an opportunity to represent your community, it's incredibly humbling."

Butterick acknowledged the other candidates which stood in the electorate saying it had been "a very clean campaign" which was focused on issues - "the way it should be."

McAnulty also stood as a candidate in the previous two elections receiving 13,642 votes to Scott's 16,514 in 2017 – a rise on his 9,452 votes to Scott's 16,223 in 2014.

The electorate includes towns in the Tararua District and Central Hawke's Bay at the north of the boundary.