KEY POINTS:
In an election that will probably result in Labour and National having three Asian MPs each, both parties will be holding ethnic campaign launches - a first for both parties - to present their slate of Asian candidates.
Party leader John Key will launch National's campaign today in
central Auckland, while Ethnic Affairs Minister Chris Carter will be in Mt Eden tomorrow to start Labour's bid to pitch for the 300,000 Asian votes.
At today's event, National will introduce Melissa Lee and Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, who hope to become the country's first Korean and Sikh MPs.
With one recent poll showing only three points between National and Labour, Labour's Chinese list candidate Raymond Huo says the Asian vote could prove crucial this election.
Mr Huo, at number 21 on the list, looks set to be Labour's answer to National's Chinese MP Pansy Wong, New Zealand's first Asian MP.
On current polls, other Labour Asian candidates heading to Parliament include Fiji Indian Rajen Prasad and Pakistani Muslim list MP Ashraf Choudhary.
"There is nothing more impactful for Asian communities than seeing people from their own communities standing in the election," Mr Huo said.
In the last election, Ravi Musuku, National's candidate of Indian descent who stood against the Prime Minister in Mt Albert, showed how much an ethnic candidate can achieve in an electorate where Asian, Pacific and Maori outnumber NZ Europeans.
Mr Musuku, who is again standing against Helen Clark, more than doubled National's support in 2005, to 8488 party votes from 3777 in the previous election.
National's other Asian candidates say they are working hard to pitch for votes from ethnic communities.
Mrs Wong, Ms Lee and Mr Bakshi say they are confident their efforts will pay dividends.
"People are welcoming us to their homes and temples, and you can sense from the hugs and warm handshakes they are genuine when they say they will be voting for us," said Mr Bakshi, who is standing in Manukau East.
Mr Huo says Labour's fielding Asians as list-only candidates was a deliberate attempt to show that "they represent their entire communities throughout the country, and not just a small segment of an electorate."
But Mrs Wong, who is standing for Botany, says National's Asian candidates were encouraged to fight for an electorate to show their "representation goes beyond ethnicity".
Former Act MP Kenneth Wang, who is not on the party's list this election, will launch his "must win" campaign - on the theme of "vote Wang, get Wang and Wong" - for Botany this Sunday.
* The race for the migrants' votes
National's campaign launch: Today, 11am at 409 Queen St.
Who will be there: National leader John Key, candidates MP Pansy Wong, Melissa Lee, Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi and Ravi Musuku.
Labour's campaign launch: Tomorrow, 2pm, Mt Eden War Memorial Hall.
Who will be there: Ministers Phil Goff and Chris Carter, candidates MP Ashraf Choudhary, Rajen Prasad, Raymond Huo, Chris Yoo, Farida Sultana, Susan Zhu and Raj Singh Thandi.
