The Green Party has announced Jordan Walker as its candidate for East Cape, a creative producer and a community advocate with work centering access and wellbeing for everyone, particularly the most vulnerable.

Walker, 36, grew up in Tūranganui-a-kiwa (Gisborne) and has Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa, Ngāti Porou and Ngāi Te Rangi whakapapa.

These core values align with the Green Party, and their policies show how this shared vision can benefit the future of the East Cape electorate.

Walker was the East Coast Green Party candidate in 2023 and was endorsed by the Green Party in the 2025 Gisborne District Council local body elections.

Walker is standing for the Green Party because they are Te Tiriti led, and their policies offer solutions and a positive future for the diverse communities and regions that make up our East Cape electorate.

Green policies on climate change, community resilience, social justice, housing and liveable incomes will provide positive and equitable outcomes for urban, rural and coastal communities, including landowners, renters, employers, and employees.

“I’m incredibly proud to be from Te Tairāwhiti, because I can reference the communities that make our region thrive. In the face of hardship and destruction, people wrap around one another here, but they’re largely doing that voluntarily and heavily under-resourced. Imagine what we could do if we had a government that backed the people?

“No one can deny how hard life has become these past three years, worsened by the deliberately destructive decisions of this coalition government, choosing profit over people, worsening the state of our climate, and refusing to adequately resource regions who are the most impacted by climate-driven disasters.”

Walker said the East Cape needed climate mitigation, direct local government resourcing, funding equity and infrastructure.

“This year alone we have already seen 21 states of emergency – slips and flash flooding across the North Island.

“The current Government knew climate issues would worsen. Instead of investing in infrastructure, they cut climate funding and have now disestablished the Ministry for the Environment.

“They are exploiting and extracting from this whenua to line the pockets of the wealthiest.”

Walker said a recent Salvation Army report found the cost-of-living crisis had surpassed the housing crisis as the primary concern for whānau across Aotearoa.

“This Government is making it harder for everyday people to survive, while the Greens have already planned and costed policies for affordable and accessible housing, education, public transport, apprenticeships, and equitable healthcare for rural and Māori communities.

“Party Vote Green for our region, our environment and a sustainable life here for you and our communities. We have enough in Aotearoa for all of us to live a good life, and we can get closer to that by voting for the Green Party.”