She’s not worried about balancing the potential demands of a local board seat with her other commitments.
“I do believe that if you want to do something, you’re going to make the time for it and you’re going to make it happen.”
For O’Keefe, age is no disadvantage: she thinks her youth offers a different perspective other board members might be sorely lacking.
She hopes “to add a different element to the local board that other people may not be able to add” - especially those who have held a seat for a while.
The Glen Eden resident became interested in running for a board position after presenting a submission on behalf of her climbing club.
“The local board was advocating for youth, but there actually wasn’t anyone that was a youth member on that board,” she said.
“I decided when I turn 18, I would put my name forward so that I could fill that gap and be the connection between youth and the board.”
O’Keefe said she thinks the Waitākere Ranges district has been under-resourced.
“We’re unable to do things like open up our tracks,” she said, or deal with kauri dieback, an incurable disease threatening Waitākere Forest.
She hopes to redirect investment into local roads, tracks, and transport, with the aim of making the region the “jewel” of Tāmaki Makaurau.
Bianca O'Keefe's campaign signs have gone missing - something she puts down to her gender and age. Photo / Michael O'Keefe.
The Independent candidate had issues with her signs being stolen last month, prompting her father, Michael, to urge the community to report any they see “in a wrong place”.
“There’s also been a lot of like social media hate as well”, she said.
She believes that abuse isn’t only related to her gender, but also her young age, which has attracted a lot of commentary online.
“It’s like a very controversial thing, I think. Like, you either love it, or you hate it.”
Of the critics, she wonders what the point of their “hate” really is.
“Anyone who’s running on that board is just a person who wants to make a difference in their community,” she said.
“Why aren’t they running? Why aren’t they putting their name forward then if they want to advocate and do all that?”
But the teen hasn’t been discouraged by the “upsetting” backlash, reflecting that she is glad young people are becoming more engaged with local politics.
“It’s really important that we are able to fully understand what they’re doing for us and how it will affect us”, she said.
“Because it does affect us, whatever they do and whatever decisions they make.”
