Stray candidate steals top spot in Hauraki meeting

By MARTIN JOHNSTON

Tame Iti won top points last night for milking a political opportunity - a key skill for parliamentary hopefuls.

The Tuhoe artist and Mana Maori Movement member was the first speaker of a candidates' meeting at Orakei Marae for the Hauraki electorate, even though he is not standing in the seat.

Alliance deputy leader Sandra Lee, who co-chaired the meeting with Labour list MP Joe Hawke, said Mr Iti was the "cleverest candidate of all."

"Joe and I have just realised that he is not a candidate for the Hauraki seat."

Mr Iti explained outside the meeting that he had not done it deliberately and he hoped he had not disrupted the meeting, but it was a good opportunity to appeal to voters.

The candidates' speeches were good-natured despite the meeting's rocky start - a political tussle in loud whispers in a corner between Mr Hawke and Alliance candidate Willie Jackson over who would be the chairman.

The electorate frontrunner, Labour candidate John Tamihere, said all state policies that had benefited Maori had come from his party.

He appealed for both the party and electorate votes, saying he was "obliged to ask for two ticks."

Mr Jackson urged people to ignore the "two-tick Tamihere" part. "If you want John and me, you've got to give the Alliance your party vote."

New Zealand First candidate Josie Anderson emphasised her party's transparent and "what-you-see-is-what-you-get" leadership.