Well after a week of very intense voting, the Lambton poll results are in.
Labour’s Marcus Ganley was ahead by a country mile. It’s not particularly surprising given how heavily he was plugging the poll (he had a link to it on the front page of his website), but one could read into that result that he does actually have a large support base to mobilise.
Iona Pannett and Adam Cunningham came a solid second and third. Both seem to have significant pockets of support. Interestingly, there seemed to be a war of words break out for and against Cunningham. We may delve further into that at a later point.
The next two candidates are Ian McKinnon and Stephanie Cook. It looks like both of them have a real fight on their hands to retain their seats. However both are experienced candidates, so I wouldn’t be too quite in writing them off.
And the poll is rounded off by Goulter, Bishop and Greening. A little surprising that Goulter managed to not come last, given he hasn’t had any positive publicity, and isn’t actually standing anymore.
It’s not surprising that Stephanie Cook is struggling. She has sold out on her earlier principles when she was an Alliance rep. She is one of the few who recently voted for the citywide booze ban, which was soundly defeated. She’s been on holiday during the chaos that is the Manners Mall destruction http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/local/3948826/Mall-shops-fear-delays-as-workers-doze. She voted to destroy Manners Mall, a key pedestrian area. It’s destruction is part of the Mayor’s Ngauranga to Airport Strategy for transport, mainly cars. http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/2474325/Buses-back-in-mall/. When she had housing resonsibility back in 2005 she increased the rents for Wellington’s poorest by 5% when inflation was practically nothing and turned down the cheaper central government formula for charging state tenants. http://www.capitaltimes.co.nz/article/204/Rentincrease.html. Her 15 long years on the council have turned Stephanie Cook into a conservative politician.
It would be interesting to rerun this one – pretty sure it doesn’t show what the outcome with be in this ward.
Cook and Cunningham’s campaigns have had little substance apart from free seeds and stories about trips on Melborune trams while growing up respectively. Support for McKinnon and Pannett is likely to hold up, so it’s going to be a real battle for third place between Bishop, Ganley and perhaps Cook and her residual supporters in the Aro Valley – hanging out for free vegees no doubt. A new poll would be fascinating. It could even include the invisible candidate Kris “I’m too busy to campaign” Price and vote for me or I’ll knock your house down Sir Michael. Jevan pulled out to take on Laws in Whanganui. Laws isn’t running.
Stephanie Cook’s time has surely come – 15 years is long enough for anyone and it’s hard to point to any achievement in that time.
I got a free packet of seeds.
I like the idea that she drives a Toyota SUV while saving the planet