NZ First recruits another Hobson’s Pledge spokesperson to stand in general election
Hobson's Pledge spokesman Elliot Ikilei will stand for New Zealand First in the coming election. Photo / Richard Robinson
The spokesman for lobby group Hobson’s Pledge will stand as a candidate for New Zealand First in the upcoming general election.
The party said Elliot Ikilei was known for his involvement in “conservative politics” and described him as a “political commentator, community advocate, trainer, and public speaker”.
Ikilei was deputy leader of the New Conservative Party between 2017 and 2020 and became leader for a short time after the 2020 election.
NZ First lauded his advocacy for “equal citizenship, democratic representation, and ‘one law for all’”, while also pointing to his work supporting vulnerable families in Auckland.
Ikilei is not the first Hobson’s Pledge spokesperson NZ First has recruited. Before the 2023 election, the party announced the group’s then-spokesperson Casey Costello would run as a candidate.
While she was unsuccessful in her Port Waikato electorate race, Costello was ranked highly on the party’s list at number three below leader Winston Peters and deputy leader Shane Jones.
Costello is now a Cabinet minister with ministerial responsibility for Customs and Seniors while holding several associate ministerial roles.
In June last year, Ikilei had a spat with Education Minister Erica Stanford over a reference to the Treaty of Waitangi relating to the duties of school boards.
The legislation downgraded the priority placed on school boards to give effect to the Treaty while establishing educational achievement as the highest priority.
However, Ikilei alleged Stanford was sneaking a “radical” Treaty of Waitangi clause into legislation, despite the clause previously existing in the legislation.
Stanford replied, criticising Hobson’s Pledge for whipping up “hatred”, “frothing at the mouth”, and “spouting complete and utter garbage, lies”.
Adam Pearse is the Deputy Political Editor and part of the NZ Herald’s Press Gallery team based at Parliament in Wellington. He has worked for NZME since 2018, reporting for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei and the Herald in Auckland.