Members of the Rotorua Lakes Council's Te Arawa partnership board would be asked to step down from the board if elected to positions on the council.
Questions had been raised about what would happen if the four members of the Rotorua Lakes Council's Te Tatau o Te Arawa board seeking election to the district council and regional council were elected next month.
Those questions were answered by board chairman Te Taru White who said he had spoken to the four candidates - Kingi Biddle, Eraia Kiel and David (Rawiri) Waru - who are standing for seats on the Rotorua Lakes Council, and Gina Mohi, who is standing for the Okurei Maori seat on the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.
Mr White said members would be asked to step down if elected to the Rotorua Lakes Council and be replaced by the next highest polling iwi candidate who stood for election to the board in November last year.
He said there would be no need for a by-election for the board.
But, Ms Mohi would not be asked to stand down as the board did not have any agreement in place with the regional council.
The district council's governance and partnerships manager Oonagh Hopkins said it was up to the board to make any decisions relating to its make up.
Out-going district councillor and chairwoman of the Rotorua District Residents and Ratepayers group Glenys Searancke said she agreed with the decision and did not have any concerns about board members standing for council.
"In fairness, they shouldn't be on both the council and the board, that could be seen as a little unethical.
"In essence if they remained on the board and council they would be voting twice at committee level and at council level so it would not be seen as fair, or democratic."
District council candidate Michael Staite, who has Te Arawa ancestry but is not a member of the board and is standing independently, said it would make sense for a board member to stand down if elected.
"If I was elected to the Te Arawa board I would be representing the people who put me there - who would be Maori.
"If elected to council my role would be as a representative of everybody in this multicultural society.
"My understanding of the Te Arawa partnership was that I'd be representing all people anyway. Isn't that what partnership means?," Mr Staite said.
Mr White went on to say all candidates were standing as individuals and were not supported by the Te Tatau board.
"Te Tatau was not involved in the selection of any candidates.
"According to the trust deed, the next highest polling nominee from last year's board elections would be asked to take their place.
"If they did not want to take up that role the existing board would be asked to nominate another person with 75 per cent of the board having to agree on this."
He said the next formal Te Tatau board election would be held in three years to align with the council election process in 2019.
"Board members were nominated and elected in November 2015 and they will serve for three years and 10 months to get back onto the timetable for council elections," he said.