Party affiliation boosts Auckland local election success - research

Thursday, 15 August 2019

The Labour Party stands candidates in local contests in Auckland strongholds in the west and south

The odds of winning a seat in October's Auckland Council elections are boosted if a candidate is in a central politics-aligned party, according to research by AUT.

The university study looked at trends since Auckland's amalgamation in 2010, and found party-affiliated candidates did twice as well as those in local groups, and were three times more likely to succeed than independents.

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Dr Karen Webster who led the research said the findings were 'significant' both for local candidates, and for central government parties considering local elections as a run-up to general elections the following year.

The proportion of candidates affiliated to a party or local group doubled between 2007, and the last election in 2016.

Dr Karen Webster from AUT led the research into political affiliations in Auckland Council elections

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Webster said some of the affiliations, especially on the political left were more overt, such as the Greens/Labour Party-backed City Vision ticket.

However the National-aligned Communities and Residents brand focussed in central Auckland, was not as clearly linked, although the well informed would know the connection.

'It is clear that the left is more successful than the right, and that suggests being open and transparent is more successful,' she told Stuff.

Webster said figures showed resounding success for the politically affiliated, with 25 per cent of candidates declaring and affiliation, and 34 per cent of those elected had declared political links.

In a city with just over one million voters, affiliation meant more than just a brand.

'Being supported means you've got that party machine behind you, and with spending caps you can achieve a lot more.'

Webster said the benefits were more marked at local board level.

There are marked exceptions to the rule as portrayed in the research.

The highest polling councillor in 2016 was Waitakere Ward's Penny Hulse who stood as an independent although is well-known as left-leaning.

Former North shore City Mayor George Wood was elected in 2010 on the C and R ticket but was re-elected as an Independent.

Webster acknowledged that in Auckland, many of the successful ward candidates were incumbents, or otherwise well-known, reducing the advantage of political affiliation.

The National Party has struggled at a local level in Auckland in recent elections.

In 2016, its high-profile new local brand Auckland Future failed, securing only an existing councillor Denise Krum, who re-branded to AF.

Party delegates this year watered down a call from Auckland members to run candidates under the National brand, and Auckland Future also decided to sit out the 2019 election, due to a lack of a clear centre-right strategy for Auckland.

Labour stands local board and ward candidates under its own brand in stronghold areas in the south and West, where it has enjoyed success.