Dave Stewart

With the local election well and truly over and the swearing in of the new council tomorrow, I’d just like to thank the 1994 people who stood with me in my campaign for a better council in Whakatāne.

We raised some of the more serious issues facing council funding and pushed back on the sheer nonsense being pedalled by coalition aligned fakers.

Our desire was to have a mature conversation about rates unaffordability and to bring into focus some long standing policies of our coalition government. The National-led coalition seemed to drop the ball on their promises to take GST off rates and return a portion of GST on new builds to local government.

A lot of people didn’t know that National, ACT and New Zealand First campaigned on these policies, so it was worth reminding people of it.

I intend to write a more detailed campaign overview later so will leave the details of that for then.

I made a lot of new friends along this journey.

I’d like to thank my hard working campaign committee, led by Doug Gerry, who were 100 percent behind me every step of the way. To my musical community friends who gave so much to my fundraiser, a huge thanks. I was given some pretty sharp mentoring along the way by former mayor Judy Turner and right at the start and former East Coast MP Kiri Allan gave me a very sharply focus "To Do" list that set the direction of campaign policy.

My biggest victory was getting my partner Kathy’s vote, which wasn’t a gimme by any means.

To everyone who came and chatted at the Sunday Market and gave us a toot and a wave at the roundabout rallies – a big thank you. Special thanks to the lady I only know as Bec who found her way to nearly every roundabout rally we had and handed me a cold can of Hazy Pale Ale from her car.

I’ve had so many well-wishers get in touch post election telling me how disappointed they are that I didn’t make it, but to them I’d only say I would rather tell the uncomfortable truths than be silent for votes.

Our politics needs more truth and less silence.

That’s called winning in my book.

Good luck to our new council, I’m thrilled about the result overall and I can’t sign off with giving the biggest thumbs up to Carolyn Hamill for storming the council chamber with more votes than the mayor.

Darn it, that was my goal, but you actually did it Carolyn – go you good thing.