Greg O’Connor reflecting on political future after Ōhāriu electorate abolished, losing selection

Third-term Labour MP Greg O’Connor is weighing up his future in Parliament after the abolition of his Ōhāriu electorate, and losing out at Labour’s selection for a new seat.

The party has picked a suite of candidates for the rejigged Wellington electorates after boundary changes saw sweeping changes to the local seats.

Union economist Craig Renney will run in the Wellington Bays seat, formerly Rongotai, in the 2026 general election, likely to challenge incumbent Green MP Julie-Anne Genter.

Kenepuru, the new electorate made up of parts of O’Connor‘s Ōhāriu as well as Porirua, will be contested by Labour’s finance spokeswoman Barbara Edmonds.

Ayesha Verrall has been selected in the Wellington North seat, formerly Wellington Central, which has moved northwards, losing suburbs like Mount Cook and Brooklyn and gaining Khandallah and Ngaio.

O’Connor reportedly went up against Verrall to be Labour’s candidate in the seat, but lost to the former Health Minister at the weekend’s meeting.

Changes to Wellington electorate boundaries.

Speaking to the Herald this morning, O’Connor said he is still reflecting on the weekend’s events, and won’t be rushing into a decision on his future.

“It’s a democratic process, and you respect it,” he said.

Asked whether he would seek a spot on the Labour Party list as a ticket into Parliament, O’Connor said that “hasn’t been a consideration, I haven’t been on the list before”.

In previous elections, he ran seat only, taking himself off the list, relying solely on winning Ōhāriu to re-enter Parliament.

“I’ve never had a plan B,” he said.

“The funny thing about it, normally when an MP says they lost their seat, it means that someone else has taken it. In my case, it disappeared in a puff of smoke, over Mt Kaukau.”

He plans to reassess his future in Parliament over the Christmas period, after a “lads’ tour around the South Island” with his son.

It is despite previously pledging to stick around regardless of the boundary changes.

“I’m just a young man, politically. I’ve only been in this game for six years, seven years. There’s a lot of life left in this old dog yet,” he told RNZ earlier this year.

Assistant Speaker Greg O'Connor in the Speaker's chair during a debate. Photo / Parliament TV

O’Connor previously served in the Police force for nearly four decades, including as an undercover officer, before going on to be president of the New Zealand Police Association.

He stood against long-serving incumbent Peter Dunne in Ōhāriu in 2017, with Dunne pulling out of the race shortly before the election.

Last election, he beat National’s Nicola Willis in the seat by around 1000 votes.

Since the end of 2023, he has served as an Assistant Speaker in Parliament.

Ethan Manera is a Wellington-based journalist covering Wellington issues, local politics and business in the capital. He can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz.