Former Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei and Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce are frontrunners for the 2018 New Zealand of the Year Awards.
Despite Turei's fall from grace after she publicly admitted she lied to Winz about her living circumstances in the 1990s she has received the most nominations.
Joyce, whose New Zealand-born father makes him a New Zealand citizen, came second.
The revelation he had dual citizenship hit the headlines this month. NZ's Labour Party became implicated in the furore after MP Chris Hipkins lodged two written parliamentary questions about whether Australian-born children of Kiwis were automatically given New Zealand citizenship.
A spokesperson for the annual awards said Joyce's eligibility for the awards will be assessed after nominations close on September 18.