Mayor of Kaipara

The mayor of Kaipara officiates over the Kaipara District of New Zealand's North Island.[1] The current mayor is Craig Jepson.

Mayor of Kaipara
Incumbent
Craig Jepson
since 2022
StyleHis/Her Worship
Seat42 Hokianga Road, Dargaville
Term lengthThree years
Inaugural holderPeter Brown
Formation1989
DeputyAnna Curnow

History

Kaipara District was formed through the 1989 New Zealand local government reforms.[2]

Graeme Ramsey was Mayor from 1998 to 2004.[3][4]

In 2012, the district council was sacked by the government and replaced with commissioners over a proposed 31 per cent increase in rates to cover the costs of the Mangawhai Community Wastewater Scheme. Some component of local democracy was restored for the 2016 local elections and full self-management was granted from the 2019 local elections onwards.[5]

Greg Gent was elected Mayor during the 8 October 2016 local elections. He took office in November 2016 but resigned suddenly after one year and one day effective November 2017. The Deputy Mayor, Peter Wethey, became Acting Mayor after Gent's departure and before the resulting by-election.[6] Sheep and beef farmer Jason Smith was elected Mayor following a by-election in February 2018.[7] He declined to stand for re-election during the 2022 local elections.[8]

During the 2022 local elections, Craig Jepson was elected as Mayor of Kaipara.[9] Jepson stood on the Democracy Northland ticket and campaigned on fixing roads, infrastructural investment, and opposing the Government's Three Waters reform programme and co-governance policies such as the Māori wards and constituencies.[8][9] In late October, Jepson appointed councillor Jonathan Larsen as Deputy Mayor.[10] In late November 2022, Jepson attracted media attention after interrupting Māori ward councillor Pera Paniora's karakia (Māori prayer).[11] He subsequently banned karakia from council meetings on the grounds that specific religions or cultures should not be included in secular meetings.[12]

List of officeholders

The following table is a complete list of the mayors of Kaipara since the district's formation in 1989.

Name Term of office Notes
1Peter Brown1989–1998[13]
2Graeme Ramsey1998–2004[14]
3Peter King2004–2007[15][16]
4Neil Tiller2007–2012[16][17]
–John Robertson
(as chair of commissioners)		2012–2016[18][19]
5Greg Gent2016–2017[20]
6Jason Smith2018–2022[21][22]
7Craig Jepson2022–present[9]

References
  1. "Mayor and Councillors". kaipara.govt.nz. Kaipara District Council.
  2. "Management Implementation of Memorandum Understanding Between Kaipara District Council and Te Uri O Hau, Ngati Whatua". Kaipara District Council. Kaipara District Council. Archived from the original on 14 October 2008.
  3. Botting, Susan (18 December 2020). "Toxic cocktail of speed and too many vehicles threatening lives and environment". Stuff. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  4. "Graeme Ramsey". LinkedIn. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  5. Akoorie, Natalie (5 March 2021). "Council chaos: Why is local government in New Zealand such a mess?". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  6. Laird, Lindy (9 October 2017). "Kaipara mayor announces his surprise resignation". The Northern Advocate. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  7. Lambly, Annette (20 February 2018). "Kaipara has a new mayor". Stuff.
  8. "Kaipara Mayoral candidates: Their top local issues and how they would address them". Radio New Zealand. 19 September 2022. Archived from the original on 21 September 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  9. Killick, Jonathan (8 October 2022). "Three new mayors for Northland councils, including Whangārei". Stuff. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  10. Botting, Susan (26 October 2022). "New Kaipara Mayor criticises increasing central government impacts". Northern Advocate. NZME. Archived from the original on 5 November 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  11. Iasona, Seni; Heikell, Leighton (30 November 2022). "Video: Newly-elected Kaipara Mayor Craig Jepson shuts down Councillor's karakia request". Newshub. Warner Bros. Discovery New Zealand. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  12. "Kaipara mayor Craig Jepson unrepentant over ban on karakia". Radio New Zealand. 3 December 2022. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  13. Lambly, Annette (3 October 2008). "Centennial shows that young and old still have community spirit". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  14. "Former Kaipara mayor runs for seat on regional council". Stuff. 4 August 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  15. Dr Bruin, Anne-Marie (14 October 2004). "King is crowned mayor". Dargaville News.
  16. "Mayor the lone contender for top job". Stuff. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  17. "Commissioners to move in after entire Kaipara council resigns". Timaru Herald. 14 August 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  18. "Kaipara Council commissioners appointed". New Zealand Government. 30 August 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  19. Whitten, Conor (25 September 2014). "Democracy returning to Kaipara with local body elections". Newshub. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  20. Ali, Imran (14 November 2017). "Greg Gent remains quiet on why he's resigned as mayor of Kaipara". Northern Advocate. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  21. Williams, Lois (22 February 2018). "New mayor promises fresh start for Kaipara". RNZ News. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  22. "Kaipara mayor returned with massive majority". Northern Advocate. 13 October 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
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