In New Zealand Te Pāti Māori Party Splits: MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi Announces New Te Tai Tokerau Party.

Wellington; May 2026: MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi has announced a new political party – Te Tai Tokerau Party named after her electorate. Te Tai Tokerau (The North Coast) is a New Zealand parliamentary Maori electorate that was created out of the Northern Maori electorate ahead of the first Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) election in 1996. It was held first by Tau Henare representing New Zealand First for one term, and then Dover Samuels of the Labour Party for two terms. From 2005 to 2014, it was held by MP Hone Harawira. Initially a member of the Māori Party, Harawira resigned from both the party and then Parliament, causing the 2011 by-election. He was returned under the Mana Party banner in July 2011 and confirmed at the November 2011 general election. In the 2014 election, he was beaten by Labour’s Kelvin Davis, ending the representation of the Mana Party in Parliament.

In the meanwhile, most of the New Zealand Parliamentarians have flagged that MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi would faces an uphill battle, while another labelling the move a ‘stunt’. The MP was expelled from Te Pāti Māori last year, before the High Court on March 20th this year has ruled her suspension and expulsion was unlawful. Although, Kapa-Kingi was reinstated to the party in March, but has now decided to contest the 2026 election under a new banner.

“This is about restoring balance, strong local representation, and sending a clear signal that Tai Tokerau political power will no longer be taken for granted” she said, after conveying her discontent to Te Pati Maori. Kapa-Kingi said the new Te Tai Tokerau Party would be contesting from Tino Rangatiratanga, and Mana Mokopuna with local decision-making. She has further asserted that, “For too long, our people have been asked to fit into systems that were not designed by us, for us, or with us in mind. Te Tai Tokerau Party is about saying our communities have the wisdom, the data, the leadership and the strength to shape their own political future”.

Her announcement did not contain any details on policies or the party’s structure, with Kapa-Kingi saying that would come in due course. She said she hoped the party would spark broader consensus across the country about what self-determined politics could look like in other regions. “We hope other rohe are inspired to build independent political powerhouses for their people across the motu”.

Since being reinstated to the party, Kapa-Kingi has continued to share an office with Te Tai Tonga MP Tākuta Ferris, who did not contest her expulsion. Last week, the entire Te Tai Tonga electorate committee resigned from Te Pāti Māori.

Responding to Kapa-Kingi’s announcement, Te Pāti Māori extended their best wishes while stating that. “Te ao Māori has always carried many voices, many rohe, many whakapapa, and many expressions of mana motuhake. We respect the right of whānau, hapū, iwi, rohe and candidates to determine their own political pathway”, a Te Pati Maouri party spokesperson said. The party confirmed MPs Rawiri Waititi, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, and Oriini Kaipara would stand for Te Pāti Māori at the election, as would candidate Haley Maxwell. Candidates in the other two electorates would be confirmed in due course.

“Our movement is bigger than any one seat, candidate, or moment”, the Te Pati Maori spokesperson said. “We are confident in our kaupapa. We are confident in our candidates. We are confident in our movement and are moving forward”.

Meanwhile, Te Tai Tokerau is shaping up to be a key Māori electorate battleground, with 03 sitting MPs set to contest the seat.

On the other side, Labour Party has put forward Willow-Jean Prime for the electorate, while Hūhana Lyndon is running for the Greens. Labour leader Chris Hipkins said his party was aiming to win all seven Māori electorates, and said Kapa-Kingi would face an uphill battle. “The history of people running as independents in any seats is very, very patchy. They’re very unlikely to succeed”.

Hipkins further asserted that naming a party after an electorate would be a “pretty big red flag” for the Electoral Commission, but it was not for him to tell the commission what to do. The Prime Minister has extended his wishes to Kapa-Kingi, but would not say whether he would work with her, should National need numbers after the election.

“It’s a total mess on that side of politics, frankly. So it’s irrelevant to us. We were very clear at the beginning of the year who we would and wouldn’t work with, and we’re very focused on a fuel crisis, that’s much more important stuff”, Christopher Luxon said.

New Zealand First’s deputy leader Shane Jones, who hails from the north, labelled it a stunt. “I’d advise her to consult Hone Harawira. He tried the same stunt as well”. Harawira had split from the Māori Party in 2011 to form the Mana Party. He won the by-election in Te Tai Tokerau and retained the seat in the 2011 general election, before eventually losing to Labour’s Kelvin Davis in 2014.

Team Maverick.