Central Hawke's Bay District Council

Central Hawke's Bay District Council Te Kaunihera a Rohe o Tamatea
Territorial authority
Coat of arms of Central Hawke's Bay
Council ward map
Type
Type	Unicameral
History
Founded	March 6, 1989 (1989-03-06), 35 years ago
Preceded by	Waipukurau District Council Waipara District Council
Leadership
Mayor	Alex Walker
Deputy mayor	Kelly Annand
CEO	Doug Tate
Structure
Seats	9 seats (1 mayor, 8 ward seats)
Political groups	Independent (9)[a]
Length of term	3 years, renewable
Elections
Voting system	First-past-the-post
Last election	8 October 2022
Next election	2025
Website
chbdc.govt.nz

Central Hawke's Bay District Council (Māori: Te Kaunihera a Rohe o Tamatea) is the territorial authority for the Central Hawke's Bay District of New Zealand.

The council covers the towns of Waipawa and Waipukurau, and the surrounding rural communities. The council is the result of the Waipukurau District Council and Waipara District Council merging in 1989.

The council is led by the mayor of Central Hawke's Bay, who is currently Alex Walker.

Composition

Central Hawke's Bay District Council is made up of one mayor and eight councillors.[1] The district is divided into two wards, which each elect four councillors. Ruataniwha is an urban ward based on the towns of Waipukurau and Waipawa. Aramoana-Ruahine is a largely rural ward. The council seat is in Waipawa. The mayor is elected at large. The council seat is in Waipawa.

Current council

Ward	Councillor	Affiliation	First elected
Mayor	Alex Walker	None	2013
Ruataniwha	Pip Burne	Your voice, our community	2022
	Gerard Minehan	Your Local Voice at the Council table	2016
	Kelly Annand	None	2013
	Exham Wichman	The voice of your generation	2019
Aramoana-Ruahine	Tim Aitken	None	2016
	Jerry Greer	None	2019
	Brent Muggeridge	None	2016
	Kate Taylor	None	2019

History

The origins of the council date back to the Waipawa County Council, established in 1876.[2]

Patangata County Council split off in 1885. Waipukurau County Council, Waipukurau Borough Council, Patangata County Council, Woodville County Council, Dannevirke County Council, and Waipawa Borough Council split off in 1908.[1][3]

Waipukurau County Council merged with Patangata County Council in 1974 and Waipukurau Borough Council in 1977 to form Waipukurau District Council.[4]

The other councils merged in 1978, to form Waipawa District Council.[4]

Waipukurau District Council and Waipawa District Council merged in 1989, to create the modern council.[4]

2022–2025 term

Māori wards

Following the decision of the Sixth National Government to force local councils to either abolish Māori wards or hold a referendum on their continued existence, the council voted in a 5–4 decision to retain them and thus to hold a referendum, to occur alongside the 2025 local elections.[5]

Vote to retain Māori wards

Ward	For	Against
	Alex Walker (mayor)
Aramoana/Ruahine	Kate Taylor	Jerry Greer
		Tim Aitken
		Brent Muggeridge
Ruataniwha	Kelly Annand (DM)	Gerard Minehan
	Pip Burne
	Exham Wichman
Total	5	4

Notes

1. includes councillors that had unique and non-notable affiliations

References

1. "About Central Hawke's Bay District Council". Central Hawke's Bay District Council.
2. Fraser, B. (1986). The New Zealand Book of Events. Auckland: Reed Methuen.
3. White, L. (compiler), Whites Pictorial Reference of New Zealand. Whites Aviation Limited, Auckland, 1952
4. "History of Central Hawke's Bay District". Central Hawke's Bay District Council.
5. Wise, Rachel (5 September 2024). "Central Hawke's Bay District Council affirms decision to have Māori wards". Hawke's Bay Today via NZHerald.

External links

• Official website

39.9441448°S 176.5822655°E / -39.9441448; 176.5822655