Phil Goff was returned to office by a huge margin on Saturday. How will he put that mandate to use this term? Hayden Donnell asks the questions. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Phil Goff is … Read more
Hayden Donnell identifies who did well, and who got massively owned, in the 2019 local elections. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here. Most of these winners and losers lists fail to capture the nuances of election humiliation. … Read more
A festival of democracy is playing out around the country today, as voting closes in our local elections and preliminary results trickle out. Alex Braae, Hayden Donnell, and miscellaneous The Spinoff staff bring you live updates. Keep refreshing the page for more. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For … Read more
Sorry about not covering everything that happened these local elections. To make it up to you, we’ve compiled all the stories we missed into an ultimate election-ending list. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here. When people think … Read more
The design of our cities can help shape our mental health. Lucy McLean puts out a call to vote for the politicians who’ll build a city where people feel more connected to community. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The … Read more
Good: setting up places for people to cast a special vote while they’re waiting for their dumplings. Bad: those places running out of voting papers. Hayden Donnell reports on some trouble with Auckland Council’s one stop shops. Auckland Council’s one stop shops are a great idea. The stations at night markets, universities, and marae allow … Read more
We asked the two leading Auckland mayoral contenders to write a ‘final pitch’ to voters. This is what John Tamihere wrote. You can read Phil Goff’s pitch here. (Important note: if you’re voting by post, get your papers in the mail today, Tuesday. If you don’t have papers, or can’t get them in the mail … Read more
We asked the two leading Auckland mayoral contenders to write a final pitch to voters. This is what Phil Goff wrote. You can read John Tamihere’s pitch here. (Important note: if you’re voting by post, get your papers in the mail today, Tuesday. If you don’t have papers, or can’t get them in the mail … Read more
In the last public debate of the Auckland mayoral campaign, the three leading contenders fronted up to a crowd of rates-averse elderly people – and an unlikely hero emerged. Hayden Donnell reports. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click … Read more
Voting in local elections is under way, and you should have received your ballot papers by now in the mail. But if you haven’t, don’t panic. Jolisa Gracewood, Hayden Donnell, and Alice Webb-Liddall have put together this guide to how to vote anyway. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. … Read more
Penny Hulse is retiring after a 27-year council career. She talked to Hayden Donnell about the reasons she stood down, the councillors she can’t stand, the Tamihere vs Goff battle, and her secret to staying sane during even the worst council meetings. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For … Read more
For Auckland is a Spinoff podcast of civic conversations with people working to create and sustain a better Auckland for all. In episode eight policy analyst Owen Gill outlines his vision for Auckland and how we can get there. Auckland in 2019 is in the same moment as Los Angeles was in 1945 and what … Read more
Penny Hulse made a call for collaboration and unity in the final meeting of her 27-year council career today. Will her plea be granted? Hayden Donnell delivers a grim assessment. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here. Penny … Read more
An Auckland mayoral candidate has reacted furiously to an advertising approach from Māori Television, which he says was a pay-for-play offer of coverage. Alex Braae reports. UPDATE: Māori Television has responded with an official statement, which can be read in full below. Craig Lord, a long-shot candidate for the Auckland mayoralty, has described an advertising offer … Read more
The power balance of the incoming Auckland Council could be decided by two overheated local debates about a golf course and a carpark. Hayden Donnell reports. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Albert-Eden local board member Graeme … Read more
This year’s crop of local election signs range from the inspired to the utterly terrifying. Professional illustrator Toby Morris delivers his analysis of the best and worst designs. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Faces, faces … Read more
John Tamihere opposed gay marriage and once called homosexual sex ‘unhealthy and violating’. Now he wants us to ‘move on’. Hayden Donnell follows him to a Rainbow Auckland debate. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. The afternoon … Read more
Some people say it’s confusing. Others think it’s boring. But running all its elections under an STV system could be the single most effective way for local government to fix its lack of diversity and woeful voting turnout, argues Hayden Donnell. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about … Read more
John Tamihere’s rates freeze proposal was criticised from all sides yesterday, but does it have any political support? We contacted Auckland’s councillors to find out. On the bright side for John Tamihere, his latest announcement wasn’t boring. The mayoral contender’s promise to freeze rates for three years drew dozens of headlines, as journalists and commentators … Read more
Phil Goff has kept a low profile compared with his headline-grabbing opponent in the early stages of the Auckland mayoral campaign. Hayden Donnell heads along to see if the mayor can win back the spotlight at his campaign launch. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming … Read more
On the good days, riding a bike is the best. But in Auckland there aren’t nearly enough of those days, and unless decision makers take urgent action, that’s not going to change. This piece originally appeared on Bike Auckland My first bike crash in central Auckland happened on Symonds Street. I was biking downhill towards … Read more
The Spinoff is covering local elections across the country with a new pop-up section. To kick things off, Hayden Donnell went to a mayoral debate at Grey Power on the North Shore of Auckland. This feature was made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click … Read more
Participating in some of New Zealand’s local government elections can be a challenge, thanks to their unusual voting methodologies and heavy use of ‘the postal system’. Thankfully your friends at The Spinoff are here to hold your hand every step of the way, from enrollment (do it now!) through to voting in an STV system. … Read more
Two months of sustained coverage of the local elections, all around New Zealand – brought to you by The Spinoff Members. Plus, a week concentrating on climate change. A month ago, we launched The Spinoff Members – a new initiative to enable our readers to contribute to our work both financially, and with editorial guidance. … Read more
For Auckland is a Spinoff podcast of civic conversations with people working to create and sustain a better Auckland for all. In episode seven, host Timothy Giles speaks to Penny Hulse, longtime Auckland councillor and former deputy mayor, about her time in council, why she’s stepping down and her hopes for the future. There’s never … Read more
Six things councils can do right now to make the ’emergency’ worth more than the paper it’s written on. Councils are declaring climate emergencies across the country, but with only a decade to cut carbon emissions in half, it’s time for them to act like this is an emergency. So, what can our cities be … Read more
The Auckland mayoral campaign features more candidates than just Phil Goff and John Tamihere. Alex Braae sat down with repeat candidate John Palino, who is having another crack at the top job. John Palino is doing it tough right now. He’s facing an extremely strong field in the Auckland mayoral elections. He’s struggling to get … Read more