Labour’s Te Tai Hauāuru candidate Te Puoho Katene addressed supporters at Pātaka Museum today alongside Labour Māori caucus leader Willie Jackson, ahead of casting his vote in Porirua.
Reflecting on his campaign journey, Katene emphasised the importance of community connection. “The reason why I ran was to represent my whānau as part of the wider Te Tai Hauāuru, I think it is important to make sure that when you are looking to represent a region you have active and deep tethers to those communities and I’ve enjoyed meeting with them all as I’ve gone around what’s the second largest rohe.”
He also highlighted the distinct needs across the expansive electorate, “While the core issues affecting those communities are shared they manifest differently in each community so it’s really important that we don’t dilute those impacts and say this is what Te Tai Hauāuru want.”
Looking back on key moments from the campaign trail, Katene shared, “In terms of highlights at the start of this journey going to Sir Maui Pomare Day at Ōwae Marae and going to celebrate the rising of Puanga in Parihaka has been two things that really stood out for me.”