Simon says
June 14th, 2008 at 9:32 am by David FarrarThe Herald reports of the selection of Simon Bridges as National candidate for Tauranga last night:
National’s new Tauranga candidate wants to avoid getting personal in his election campaign.
Simon Bridges, who won selection last night, told the Weekend Herald he did not want a battle with his likely foe, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters.
“I want to earn votes from Tauranga by presenting a positive, ambitious case, not getting into a slanging match,” Mr Bridges said. …
“I think people want more dignity from their politicians, and I’m not going to be playing in the gutter.”
Mr Bridges said Tauranga residents had voted for change three years ago when they elected Mr Clarkson after 21 years of Mr Peters as their MP.
“People are tired of the politics of the past. Tauranga is now a modern and vibrant city and it wants an MP to match.”
Indeed. It is about the future vs the past.
Rising living costs were a major issue for young families and seniors in his electorate, and Tauranga residents had told him they wanted firm action on law and order.
Mr Bridges said he had a strong understanding of the latter after working as a Crown prosecutor in the city for the past few years.
He holds a law and arts degree from the University of Auckland, and a Masters in Law from Oxford University.
He plans to resign from his job and work full time on his campaign.
Winston Peters is on Agenda tomorrow and he may confirm his candidacy then.
Audrey Young blogs on Tauranga also:
In Simon Bridges, Peters faces a young, new face, someone who more represents the sort of change National is projecting nationally through leader John Key.
That will be a tougher contest for Peters. The mood for change has stubbornly persisted in the polls for almost two years in nationwide polls and there are perhaps as few as four months to go to the election.
Related posts:
- Peters rules out Tauranga
- Clarkson stepping down
- Ralston on Peters
- Winston confirms candidacy for Tauranga
June 14th, 2008 at 9:44 am
peters will win tauranga..
and will likely crack 5%..
(the defecting labour ‘oldies’ will see to that latter..)
phil(whoar.co.nz)
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Have you been to Tauranga this century Phil? Thought not.
“Toe-wronga” as the well-to-do PC locals refer to it (bless) is the fastest growing region in New Zealand and has a dynamic economy anchored yes with a fair few grey beards and blue rinses but also a fast growing younger population. An agricultural and export based business sector. Generally I’d comment that “the Toe” seems to have been fairly anti-labour for the last few decades, viewed Winnie as their renegade, stick it to the establishment man – but Liarbore ARE the establishment now.
In fact I’d compare Tauranga with Hawkes Bay and Napier w.r.t demographics and also political leanings at the moment.
Firmly National.
(although I wish Cullen would fuck off and stop sullying the mighty HB with his presence).
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 10:35 am
Agreed ex-pat. Tauranga is one of New Zealand’s fastest growing areas, and the prception of it being a refuge for the elderly is somewhat dated. Anyway, a few power cuts over the winter will dent Winston’s key constituency even further. National has done well to select a young, ambitious and articulate local candidate.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 10:40 am
I guess Phil, from his subsidised bungalow in Mt Albert or Te Atatu may not realise is that heartland NZ has had a guts full of Hulun, Mikhael et al and are turning to the Nats for young, qualified and progressive representatives
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 10:55 am
Just to make sure he keeps Winnie out
Vote:Bridges should get Bob the Builder to attack Winnie while staying out of it
June 14th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Expat I believe you are correct, there would be without a doubt some diehard Limbo supporters living in our bigger urban areas that have not realised there is a massive dislike of Limbo and all that lick their sorry arses in most of rural NZ. Many see Winnie first as a sale out and I would bet Philu will not be putting any of his benifit payments on a bet at the TAB backing winnie.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Being a junior Crown Prosecutor , but really only a minor partner of a private law firm . The grind wasn’t that all that interesting. How would a young ex jaffa make his mark in a conservative city like Tauranga. I know lets play at MP for a few years. That’s they way to get noticed, mix with a better class of people , see the world.
Vote:By the time Simon would be considered as cabinet material Slippery would be on his way out, give them 3 years.
Even Bob only lasted 3 years and that probably came a bit more quickly that he thought, but after his ‘pay the bill’ insult where it was made clear that he would NEVER have an executive position, Bob longed to go back to being his own boss..
Not that his wish to be an under secretary that would vet all construction contracts was any thing more than a fanatasy more suited to 50 years ago. No department head would allow an MP any where near future tenders.
June 14th, 2008 at 5:57 pm
“…and will likely crack 5%”
Whoar, is that a Freudian slip?
Vote:You stop consuming that stuff in leaf or rock-like form. Your ramblings are more pathetic by the day
June 14th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Agreed Manolo, Phule has showed us his us by date……
……. and it was ten years ago.
Eh?
Sad really, but we all make our choices, right?
Phule appears to have chosen to wither.
Bridges will romp in and looks like he could do well in Welly, we’ll see.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Peters will play the race card he will attempt pork barrel politics, he will throw dirt right left and centre. But he has a dilemma. Does he concentrate on Tauranga or does he run a nation-wide campaign. Also it has been 3 years since he was last seen in the electorate. Tauranga is a fast growing city and his core voters are dying off. I hope Peters runs a carpet bag argument as he himself originated from Hunua before adopting Tauranga and he has been absent these last 3 years. Simon is about the best candidate National could have chosen, suck a stark contrast with Peters.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Larry Baldock (Kiwi Party) will most likely win Tauranga: former City Counsellor, and achieved more for the city while an MP than did the sitting MP at the time (Peters).
Bridges = Untried future backbencher.
Peters = Fishfood
Baldock = Seasoned MP and minor party Leader.
This seat will be the sensation on Election night – mark my words.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
philu says:
If National had left Bob the Buffoon there, I might grant that your prediction had a chance, phil, but with a new candidate I think it highly unlikely. Winston took not only the electorate as a whole but – more importantly – his dedicated supporters in Tauranga for granted when he was MP. To cite but one example, he sent me to address the electorate AGM because he ha a dinner date in Wellington with a wealthy donor. Not a move calculated to endear yourself to people who’ve spent the past year baking scones and putting up yard signs (despite my wit, charm and good looks
).
If he stands there again he’ll be on his own, and rather than being faced with mere apathy he’ll have former supporters who’ve turned against him, and there’s no more dedicated or hard working campaigners for your opponent than people who used to think the sun rose an set with you, till you pissed them off.
Now that prediction I won’t dismiss so readily. Conservative, older Labour voters need somewhere to go if they’re not happy with the social liberals and nanny-state control freaks that make up much of the present government. They’re not going to vote National, they couldn’t bring themselves to vote Green… they might just hold their nose and vote NZF.
It seems to be a strategy that’d being implicity encouraged by Labour. While The Standard recently published a list of “outrageously prejudiced” statements made by National MPs (and to be fair many of them – specially those of Bob the Buffoon – were evidence of narrow minds at work). But nary a mention of many comments by Winston that would have equalled or bettered those on the list. And check their archives – a steady drip of positive stories praising a man whom I’d be willing to bet turns the stomachs of most of the bloggers there.
Then read their recent post espousing the idea that “party with the most votes doesn’t get to govern” – provided the party with less votes can lash together some sort of three-legged coalition donkey.
So encouraging the flow of conservative Labourites to NZF in return for post-election support… by no means a wild conspiracy. In fact I think phil has nailed it.
Vote:June 14th, 2008 at 11:49 pm
The old people who are looking at higher food, heating and gas bills?
The old people who have been ripped off by finance companies and REINZ members on Labours watch?
Those old people?
The ones who don’t like Labour, have seen Winnie slide in as Huluns lapdog?
Why would they vote NZF, its a vote for Labour.
Vote:June 15th, 2008 at 9:15 am
A few billboards of Lockwood “Blue Chip ” Smith around Tauranga would give a voter stampede to Peters
Vote:June 15th, 2008 at 9:23 am
I doubt it. How come Liarbore and NZF have ignored Mark Weldon and Paula Rebstock for the past 5 years when they have lobbied for more regulation in the financial services sector?
Vote:June 15th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Oh piss off Ghostie, attending a golf tournament doesn’t make Lockwood involved in Blue Chip.
But I would be keen to see a few billboards around tauranga of Winston – Mr Transparency himself, who has “secretly” been giving money that should have gone back to the taxpayer to charities – without the charities knowledge. How very very transparent.
Vote:June 15th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
expat asks:
No, expat, the rusted-on base of older Labour voters (the “cloth cappers” if you want a stereotype to help you understand) who don’t like the social liberalism of much of Labour’s front bench, who don’t think governments should be telling people not to smack their kids (“I got whacked round the ears, never did me any harm”) but who’d rather eat shards of glass than vote National.
Those old people. There’s a fair number of them. I realise you’re an expat but so am I… how can you not know that there is a subsection of Labour voters who’d be much happier if Mike Moore was still running the show, but who’d never betray the party by voting for a party in direct opposition?
Vote: