In the lead-up to the election, Newshub is featuring profiles of some of the main candidates running in some of the most contested electorate seats around the country.
This week Newshub is looking at Wellington Central.
Wellington Central has become a hotly contested seat with incumbent Grant Robertson retiring from the electorate, leaving the race wide open for a fresh face.
The seat is home to some big names, with Robertson holding the seat since 2008. National deputy leader Nicola Willis, Greens co-leader James Shaw and ACT deputy Brooke van Velden also unsuccessfully ran for the seat in the last election.
However, these MPs have all moved elsewhere - Robertson and Shaw standing as list-only candidates, Willis moving to Ōhāriu and van Velden to Tāmaki, leaving room for a new MP on the block.
The main contenders are Labour's Ibrahim Omer, National's Scott Sheeran and Greens' Tamatha Paul.
Omer said transport and housing are the biggest issues Wellington Central residents are concerned about and will call a summit to bring Government, council, iwi and NGOs together to agree on their priorities as a city to take to any future Cabinet.
Dr Sheeran, meanwhile, wants to get rid of Let's Get Wellington Moving and instead ensure the second Mt Victoria tunnel is started and the Basin Reserve congestion is fixed. He also wants to work with Waka Kotahi to further invest in Wellington, including in the Golden Mile.
Greens candidate Tamatha Paul did not respond to Newshub's questions by the deadline.
Here's what Wellington Central's candidates have to say:
Q: Why have you chosen to run for Wellington Central?
Ibrahim Omer: "I came to Wellington with nothing, but Wellington Central is where I have made my home. Soon after arriving at the Māngere Refugee Resettlement Centre in 2008, I moved to Wellington to begin my new life. I was told not to move here, but I insisted. Wellington is my home.
"Wellington Central is where I cleaned offices, hostels and lecture theaters at Vic Uni, and where I worked as a security guard. It is where I studied and was awarded my degree, and where I have lived, both in Council Housing and private rentals. It is where I became an activist, and made me who I am, so it’s time to give back the best way I know how and be the voice of Wellington Central in Parliament.
"Wellington Central is home to a wide range of New Zealanders - public servants, students, young professionals, creatives as well as people like I was who work hard on minimum wage jobs to get by. It is important that Wellington Central is a home for all these people, and I’m committed to making sure Wellington Central is a safe, inclusive, creative and prosperous home for everyone. This is what the Labour Party is committed to and is what I promise as a local MP too. "
Scott Sheeran: "Wellington Central is where my heart is, and where I began my family with Haidi my wife. I first moved here in 1999, and have lived in Brooklyn, Kelburn, Haitaitai, Lambton, and now Te Aro. I’ve worked in three public sector agencies, two law firms, and am now in barristers' chambers. I love this city, and like many Wellingtonians, know we can do a lot better."
Q: What is the first thing you will do for your electorate if voted in?
Scott Sheeran: "Get rid of Let’s Get Wellington Moving. I'll work hard to ensure the second Mt Victoria tunnel is started and the Basin Reserve congestion is fixed. I'll work with Waka Kotahi to ensure that further investment in Wellington, including in the Golden Mile, actually reflects the voices and interests of all community members."
Ibrahim Omer: "I will call a Wellington Housing and Transport Summit to bring Government, council, iwi and NGOs together to agree our priorities as a city to take to Government.
"Transport and Housing are by far the issues that are raised with me the most at doors and in community meetings. We must get Wellington Moving moving. Labour has committed to this, as do I. Wellington also has a significant shortage of housing, both public and private, and we must work together to build more homes and increase the overall quality of our housing."
Q: What is your long-term goal for the electorate?
Ibrahim Omer: "My long-term goal is for Wellington Central to be a connected and inclusive community, where people are in meaningful jobs with good conditions. Our natural environment should be rich with bird life, thanks to a predator-free environment that is also a carbon sink due to the significant native planting and many low-carboncarbon transport options. We also need to be a city with affordable public services and where all people live in warm dry homes for the long term if they want to."
Scott Sheeran: "A vibrant, accessible and prosperous Wellington, in which there are great jobs and opportunities, and where we’re not crushed by the cost of living and lack of housing. I’m confident as the electorate’s MP in the next Government, I can ensure that we attract investment and attention, and push for better decision making by local Government."
Q: What did you do before politics?
Scott Sheeran: "I've done a lot of different things over the 25 years of my career. I've been a barrister, public servant, diplomat, academic, military officer, management consultant, and human rights defender. I've worked at high levels in our government, including directly with Ministers and briefing Cabinet and the Prime Minister."
Ibrahim Omer: "Before entering politics on the Labour Party list in 2020, I was a union organiser for E Tū Union, helping some of our lowest wage workers get better pay and conditions. I worked for the union after I graduated from Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, with a Bachelor of Arts in politics and international relations. Before then, I mainly worked as a cleaner, and did some security work too, which enabled me to save up enough money to fulfill my dream of going to university. As a student, while still cleaning the same lecture theatres I was studying in, I learnt the importance of standing up for the community. I became a Living Wage community leader, the chair of ChangeMakers Resettlement Forum, and a board member of Newtown Union Health Service."
