King runs for Tasman mayor one last time

Tasman's two-term incumbent mayor, Tim King, said this election will be his last. Photo: LDR / Max Frethey

Tasman mayor Tim King has decided to run for the position once again, but he might not have if it wasn't for the two deluges which have left the district sodden and reeling.

He said he had made the decision to seek re-election "27 times in the last six months".

"I must have made it, and unmade it, and made it again multiple times."

But the "final catalyst" for his decision were the repeated bouts of heavy rain which flooded communities across Tasman.

"You do this job, obviously, as part of a community, and it is all about people," King said.

"The last six weeks, [I've] definitely seen the people side of the community and all of its guises - the great things, the really difficult things, frustration, challenges, anger, all of the things that come out of these sorts of events - but it really reminds you of why you do this job."

King, pictured ahead of surveying flood damage with Ministers David Seymour and Mark Mitchell, said Tasman's storms were the "final catalyst" to confirm his decision. Photo: Supplied/Tim Cuff

He added that having several "very experienced" councillors choosing not to re-stand also played a role in his decision.

"Providing people with the option of someone who has experience, both in the council generally and in the leadership role is, from my perspective, going to be quite important for the next council."

That next council will have to grapple with a prolonged recovery from the June and July storms, similar financial problems to those faced by councils nationally, and significant central government reforms of the local government sector, King said.

He saw his priority as moulding and leading the elected council "to get the best out of those people and all the different views that they're likely to bring to the table" as the council navigates though challenges.

Despite his "umming and aahing" over whether he'll run again, King was certain that this election would be his last.

"The one thing that hasn't changed in my mind is that, whether I'm successful or not this time around, this will definitely be the last time I put my name forward."

He said the job had a "big impact" on your personal life. King also runs his own farm and was "passionate" about coaching children's sport.

"This consumes a huge amount of your time, and you're never really off, there's no downtime, unless you get away, and I don't get away that often."

King, pictured alongside Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Waimea Irrigators Ltd chair Murray King, opened the Waimea Community Dam earlier this year. King said he should be judged on his mayoral record. Photo: LDR / Max Frethey

The "increasingly negative, and often quite personal" rhetoric about local government was also a factor weighing on his decision to run again.

"It is quite a negative conversation around local government in general, as it has been for the last couple of years, and obviously this government has kind of amped that up to quite a degree over the last few months."

King said that there was "no doubt" that atmosphere was dissuading people from running for council, beyond the time considerations.

"I've talked to literally dozens of people who have thought about standing for local government in this election… there're maybe two people who have ultimately decided to put their hand up… which is very unfortunate, because the community deserves to have choice."

King didn't think he would change many people's minds over the next few months and so his campaign was expected to be "pretty low-key" - "don't expect to see me popping up on social media, or popping up on Stuff ads, or too many billboards floating around" - as he relied on his track record over the last six years of his mayoralty.

"As a sitting mayor… ultimately, you should be judged on what you have done, not necessarily what you say you might do in the future," he said.

"Not everyone agrees with the decisions that I've made or the council's made. That is part of politics. If I didn't believe that I had done a reasonable job in the circumstances that have presented themselves in the last six years, I wouldn't have chosen to put my name forward."

Running against King for mayor were Maxwell Clark, Richard Johns, Timo Neubauer, Richard Osmaston.

Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air