Lower Hutt Mayor Campbell Barry announces he won’t run again

• Lower Hutt Mayor Campbell Barry will not seek re-election in October, ending his tenure.
• Barry, elected in 2019 at age 28, was New Zealand’s youngest city mayor at the time.
• He is proud of delivering Te Ngaengae Pool and a $1.5 billion Riverlink deal.

Lower Hutt Mayor Campbell Barry has announced he’s calling time on the role and won’t seek re-election at October’s election.

Speaking to the Herald this morning, Barry said it’s something he’s been thinking about for “about a year”.

“Sometimes leaders and elected members hang on too long and don’t quite leave at the right time, it feels like this is good timing for me and I’m able to go out on my terms.”

Barry says after securing funding for the Riverlink project, he's ready to leave Hutt City Council. Photo / Supplied, Mark Tantrum

Barry was first elected as Mayor in 2019 at 28, making him New Zealand’s youngest-ever elected mayor of a city.

He ran on a Labour Party ticket and campaigned on a “new approach”.

He has served two terms as mayor and said he’s most proud of his work to deliver the new Te Ngaengae Pool and last week landing a $1.5b deal for the Riverlink project.

He’s currently in his second term as mayor and served two terms on the council before the role.

Campbell Barry has been working as a councillor since the age of 20. Photo / File

“I’ve been involved in local government for 15 years now, when I was 19 - that’s quite a long time”.

The mayor made headlines in 2020 after he revealed he still got asked for ID when purchasing alcohol.

He said it’s about leaving on a high and taking on “a new challenge”.

As for what that challenge is, Barry said he didn’t have anything lined up but is looking for an opportunity outside of politics.

“I’m not sure exactly what that looks like at the moment,“ he said.

He said his main priority currently is to “nail the next six months” and get progress on the new regional water entity.

Running for Parliament isn’t on the cards, Barry said, ruling out becoming an MP, which he said is something he’s been asked a lot over recent days.

Water and infrastructure has been a real passion, he said, but has no plans yet for work in that area.

Elsewhere in the region, Upper Hutt’s Wayne Guppy has confirmed he is running for another term.

Porirua Mayor Anita Baker confirmed to Newstalk ZB last year she would be running again.

Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has now secured the Green Party endorsement to run again.

Andrew Little this week told the Herald he is “actively considering” challenging Whanau for the job.

The local election will be held on October 11.

Ethan Manera is a multimedia journalist based in Wellington. He joined NZME in 2023 and is interested in local issues, politics and property in the capital. Ethan is always on the lookout for a story and can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz.