Electorate MPs can’t choose communities

The newly elected Wellington Central MP doesn’t understand her responsibility to her constituents:

New Wellington Central MP Tamatha Paul will need to represent everyone in the electorate, including the people who didn’t vote for her – and Mike Hosking’s listeners.

The Green Party team declined to give Hosking an interview with Paul on Saturday night. Paul said some of the Newstalk ZB broadcaster’s comments can be “inflammatory” for the communities she represents.

”There is a bit of distrust from particular communities about some of the things that he says that can be really quite hurtful,“ she told Newstalk ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills.

”That doesn’t really align with what we stand for with the Greens and so that call was made.” . . .

She has been elected as a Green MP but her responsibility is to serve all her constituents not just Green aligned communities.

Being a local MP means keeping up with local issues and arguing on behalf of local causes in Parliament.

MPs must make themselves available to constituents for any queries they have, including queries that don’t relate to Green Party policy. . . .

She might not be the only MP from one of the wee parties who has to learn that electorate MPs have a wider constituency than their members and supporters.

Who’s best at getting votes?

On Q & A on Sunday Richard Prebble pointed out that none of Labour’s three leadership contenders had a good record for getting votes. (Transcript here).

In 2008 they were:

David Cunliffe, New Lynn, a dark red electorate: electorate vote 17,331, majority 4,025, party vote 14,165.

Grant Robertson, Wellington Central, a swinging electorate, electorate vote 17,046, majority 1,904, party vote 14,244.

Shane Jones, Northland, a National electorate, electorate vote 9,835, loss by 10,054, party vote 8,573.

In 2011 they were:

David Cunliffe, New Lynn – 16,999, majority 5,190, party vote 12,462.

Grant Robertson, Wellington Central: electorate vote 18,836, majority 6,376, party vote 10,459.

Shane Jones, Tamaki Makarau, a former Labour seat now held by the Maori Party: electorate vote  6,184,  a loss by 936, party vote 7,739.

In 2008 and 2011 Cunliffe’s electorate votes was higher than the party one but both were lower in 2011.

Robertson’s vote was higher than the party vote in both elections, his personal vote went up in 2011, the party vote went down.

In 2008 Jones’s electorate vote was higher than Labour’s party vote, in 2011 it was lower.

Looking at the colour of the seats, Robertson in the marginal Wellington Central did best but none of them was particularly good at getting votes.

Compare them with the National leader and deputy.

John Key got 26,771 electorate votes, won with a majority of 20,547  and attracted 23,559 party votes in 2008 and in 2011 got 26,011 electorate votes, a majority of 21,066 and 23,558 party votes.

In 2008, Bill English won Clutha Southland with   22,631 electorate votes, a majority of 15,475 and 20,235 party votes. In 2011 he won with 21,375 electorate votes, a majority of 16,168 and a party vote of 20,020.

These are very blue electorates, but New Lynn ought to be a red one.

The question those voting for Labour new leader should be asking Cunliffe, Jones and Robertson is, what are there chances of getting the sort of voter support Key and English do and how will they do it?