The 37-year-old musician and education contractor has previously stood for election to the council in Whanganui but said his mayoral campaign had put a much brighter spotlight on him than he had experienced before.
"It's been positive and negative," he said.
"At one end of the spectrum, I've had some really encouraging feedback from people attending the mayoral forums. Someone said they were leaning toward another candidate but said they liked what I had to say and encouraged me to stand for the next election if I'm not successful this time."
Harding has also been subjected to nasty comments online and he said one person had made an abusive call to his workplace.
"I've got a pretty thick skin and I guess I'll have to develop a thicker one if I'm elected," he said.
"I don't know that I would have put myself up for this if I'd known people would do that but I'm here now and I've got plenty to offer."
Harding said he is ready to tackle the central government reforms to resource management, water infrastructure, and the Future for Local Government Review if elected to council.
"Working in education, I'm used to dealing with reforms," he said.
"You have to be adaptable while standing up against the aspects that don't sit well with you."
Although raised in Whanganui, Harding is of Ngāi Tahu descent and said he is inspired by the partnership his iwi is forming with Canterbury Regional Council.
"I thought Māori Wards were the best way to achieve representation but after speaking with some Whanganui iwi leaders, I can see possibilities for a different model for iwi representation on this council.
"It would be a way to ensure that there are always iwi voices at the table."
Youth wellbeing and education opportunities in Whanganui are things Harding is passionate about and he would like to see the council expand its reach in those spaces.
"I look at the pilot school and I see the potential for other specialised education," he said.
"When you think about our proximity to Ruapehu, we could maybe have a school for ski instructors and snow technicians. There are lots of possibilities.
"It would attract more international students to Whanganui and the returns could be phenomenal."
Harding said addressing Whanganui's housing shortage would be a priority for him, as it is for other candidates, because it is intrinsic to community wellbeing.
"Providing the physical structures for people to live in may not be a current council responsibility but community well-being is," he said.
"I anticipate that the Government will initiate a devolution process where responsibility for housing could shift to local government."
Harding said whatever happened the well-being of people needing housing had to be part of the council's overall responsibility in partnership with community agencies and the central Government.
Harding is a former Whanganui UCOL music lecturer and won the award for Pop Male Artist of the Year at the LA Music Awards in Los Angeles in 2014.
If elected to the council, he would encourage te reo and tikanga Māori at the table and would love to see waiata sung at some meetings.
If elected, he said he would want to be seen as someone who works hard for the whole community.
"I would like people to see that I was the guy who always showed up and tackled the hard conversations."
