Tauranga Elections: Mahé Drysdale to become Mayor of the city following progress results

Mahé Drysdale will become Mayor of Tauranga following the first results of the Tauranga City Council elections.

Preliminary results were published this afternoon, based on 82% of the votes. An update with preliminary results is expected tomorrow afternoon, and final results next week.

The two-time Olympic gold medallist in rowing, who became a financial adviser after retiring from the sport, said he was focused on the future and wanted to lead a new generation of strong, responsible leaders who would create a modern and attractive city.

According to votes received by 5pm yesterday, Drysdale has 13,419 votes, Greg Brownless 8,577, Tina Salisbury 7,145 and Ria Hall 5,740.

Raised in Tauranga and living in Cambridge, Drysdale said the impact of population growth, major infrastructure development and inner-city redevelopment were issues the new council would need to address.

Two former councillors have been re-elected to the wards, early results show. Pāpāmoa Ward Councillor Steve Morris served on the council that was recalled in 2019. Arataki Ward Councillor Rick Curach will serve his seventh term on the council after failing to do so in 2019.

As of Friday, the number of votes cast was 33,998, with special votes and those cast on Saturday still being counted.

In district races, progress results indicate that the following candidates are leading:

Te Awanui: Mikaere Sydney

Arataki: Rick Curach

Bethlehem: Kevin “Herb” Schuler

Matua-Otūmoetai: Glen Crowther

Mauao/Mount Maunganui: Jen Scoular

Papamoa: Steve Morris

Dad: Rod Taylor

Taurus: Marten Rozeboom

Welcome Bay: Hautapu Baker

Drysdale said he would take a multi-pronged approach to address Tauranga’s housing shortage.

“I would like to encourage the development of high-density housing in and around Tauranga city centre, helping to bring vitality back to the city,” he previously told Local Democracy Reporting.

“It is important that the council has a robust plan, is efficient in processing and cuts red tape to enable people to implement the plan as easily, efficiently and cost-effectively as possible.”

The 45-year-old is married to Juliette and they have three children aged 4, 7 and 9. He works at Forsyth Barr in Tauranga two days a week and said he has seen first-hand the challenges facing Tauranga.

Drysdale is the grandson of Sir Robert (Bob) Owens, who was Mayor of Tauranga from 1968 to 1977 and Mayor of the Mount Maunganui District from 1971 to 1974.

This is the first Tauranga City Council election since 2019, and the elected group will serve a four-year term – a first for New Zealand.

In another first, the city will elect a Maori ward councillor who will serve alongside a mayor and at-large ward councillors in what many have framed as a return to democracy for New Zealand’s fifth-largest city.

The 2019 council was dismissed and replaced by government-appointed commissioners in 2021 after a tumultuous start to the term raised governance concerns.

The then Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta appointed four commissioners to lead the council: former National Party minister Anne Tolley as chair, with Bill Wasley, Stephen Selwood and Shadrach Rolleston.

None of the commissioners ran for office this election, but six 2019 council members ran again.

In total, 75 candidates raised their hands, 15 of them mayoral candidates. Voters ranked their top choices using the single transferable vote system.

The new council will take charge of a rapidly growing city with a housing shortage of 5,500 people and projected to continue growing, New Zealand’s biggest port, traffic congestion and the least affordable housing of any major centre. Commissioners have planned about $4.9 billion in capital expenditure over the next decade.

Premier Christopher Luxon has identified the city as an early option for a city-region deal, committing to a long-term investment partnership with the Government.

– LDR is a local journalism outlet co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

Additional reports The Bay of Plenty Times