Social issues campaigner Jackie Elliott has swept to a substantial win in the Ōtaki Community Board By-election.
Ms Elliott won 1223 votes with nearest challenger Christine Papps on 1052. Annie Bythell received 711 votes in the first round of the STV vote.
Ms Elliott said she was very grateful for the support she received from the Ōtaki community during the campaign.
“I would like to thank all those who voted for me and all those who took part in the election. After working so hard encouraging the community to take part in Council processes, the 40.47% return is a great reward.
“The early result took me by surprise,” said Ms Elliott. “Not expecting a provisional result until much later in the day, I thought the returning officer was ringing me with a query, not a result.”
“I would like to thank the other two candidates, Annie and Christine for their sportsmanship. They are splendid members of the Ōtaki community. I would like to thank my family, friends, supporters and campaign workers too for all their support and hard work.”
Ms Elliott said she was looking forward to being a member of the Ōtaki Community Board team, and working in the interests of the community of Ōtaki. “I realise there is a huge learning curve ahead of me, I value the experience of the current team very much.”