Internet Party candidate shortlist

Written By: - Date published: 8:06 pm, June 6th, 2014 - 76 comments
Categories: accountability, democratic participation, election 2014 - Tags:

The names of 20 short listed Internet Party candidates have been published.

Internet party

The list has a very fresh, diverse, youthful, talented and energetic feel to it.  It’s hard to say more from the thumbnail sketches included for each candidate.  I would like to see them involved in some interviews and debates, and generally learn more about them.

It’s impossible to tell which of them will be the most effective in the political arena.

Some come from a fairly academic background, others from the IT sector, some have experience in grassroots politics, some have a background in community work, others in public sector work such as teaching, and there are one or two musicians.

One or two are clearly left and green leaning, but it’s not easy to tell who leans more to the left.  The thumb nail sketches remind me a little of the information we get for candidates for Auckland Council elections.

Take a look at the shortlist.  What do you think?  What more do we need to know?

laila

With Harre as mentor, or leader, it is very likely this party will bring some new people into politics, possibly with some different skill sets than we have in the current MPs.  Hopefully the best of them will be strongly left wing.

76 comments on “Internet Party candidate shortlist ”

  1. weka 1

    Interesting group, interesting backgrounds, much more diverse ethnicities than we are used to. It’s refreshing to look at such a list and not see it overloaded with white blokes (sorry vto, it’s just a balancing out thing).

    Also refreshing to see a real estate agent and a lower decile social worker side by side.

    Although there are 6 women out of 22. I’ve been reading a bit on the IPs loomio members forum, and there seem to be mostly men there. I’d love to know what the actual candidate selection process is – they’re letting members vote but I assume they don’t get the only say. It’ll be interesting to see how the list of 22 gets ordered and prioritised.

    Karol, I agree it would be good to know more about them and hear their voices. I would have liked to know where they live too.

  2. Lanthanide 2

    In practice this doesn’t really matter. The first list place for IP after Laila is #5.

    IMP would be doing very well to get John Minto at #4 in.

    • karol 2.1

      Well, it may still give some people with potential, an introduction to campaigning, etc.

      • weka 2.1.1

        I agree, this is about building the party over the long term. How the list looks will also influence voters – a better list will increase the chances of getting beyond one MP.

        • fisiani 2.1.1.1

          Long term? Mercenaries bought with ill gotten gains. $147,000 /12 a month for 4 months work (over $3000 a week) No other party pays mercenaries. Mercs don’t stay around after a heavy defeat.

          • weka 2.1.1.1.1

            what are you on about?

            • fisiani 2.1.1.1.1.1

              Crim Dot Con stated that he would pay candidates the same wage as a backbench MP to campaign. None of them expects to get into parliament. They are just political prostitutes or mercenaries.

              • weka

                Kind of like John Banks? Except without the deception and criminality.

                • fisiani

                  Crim Dot Con is the essence of deception and crimininality

                  • McFlock

                    the judge disagreed.

                    • fisiani

                      Previous judges did not

                    • weka

                      guilty for life? Will you apply the same to Banks?

                    • McFlock

                      Previous judges did not

                      Nah, the most recent one says banks is even worse than kdc’s old convictions. I mean, the nats let kdc in the country, didn’t they? He was good enough then.

                      Heh – saw a fb pic that ACT is tough on crime, unless the crim is their only MP.

                    • fisiani

                      of course I would apply the same to Banks. Banks leaving will make it easier for John Key to poll over 50%

                    • felix

                      Oh well, at least you’ve stopped pretending there’s any principle involved. 🙄

                    • Kiwiri

                      “Banks leaving will make it easier for John Key to poll over 50%”

                      Fine. Natz can go ahead and be more honest about who they are and what policies they truly want to push down NZ’s throat. And if the country’s voters collectively gives them more than 50% (or rather gets bought or bribed), well, go for it. Take out the ACT pretence and false propping up, and bring back honesty and transparency. FFS the criminal was a National MP and Minister of Police, and his mayoral campaign adviser was the National Party’s matriarch who had anointed the current National Party leader.

                      Not so long ago, there was the puppet show ACT of getting rid of Hide et al, installing Brash, using and shafting others such as Calvert, followed by parachuting in Banks. And now it is the anything but plain and whiter than Whyte.

                      btw, the strikeout command is not working?

          • Stephanie Rodgers 2.1.1.1.2

            Paying candidates is a great idea. It allows people who normally wouldn’t be able to take time off work to campaign to participate in the process.

      • RedBaronCV 2.1.2

        and we need that. Looking at the age of some of local body’s there just ain’t anyone young on them . Many are older than the boomer generation. At a quick glance an interesting mix of people.

        • karol 2.1.2.1

          There were one or two young ones going for my local board. From memory they also leaned to the left, so I voted for them.

          • RedBaronCV 2.1.2.1.1

            around wellington a couple of good younger candidates lost out to name recognition and were not re-elected

    • felix 2.2

      Worth doing just to wind Hooton up. He’s spent the last week trying to spread the meme that Mana-IP is a bunch of 60-year-olds chasing the votes of 20-year-olds.

      • Disraeli Gladstone 2.2.1

        They need to stop putting the word “awesome” everywhere. It does rather feed into that meme.

        • Colonial Viper 2.2.1.1

          “Awesome”? How 1990s…

          • Disraeli Gladstone 2.2.1.1.1

            I’m waiting for all the “cool” words of yesteryear to be rolled out by middle-aged people trying to connect with young people: hip, radical, word, peace out, man, far out.

            Going to be a nostalgia trip.

            • weka 2.2.1.1.1.1

              But how old are the people criticising the IP for using the word awesome? ;-p

              • Disraeli Gladstone

                Old enough to have been told off for using the word awesome myself!

                • felix

                  Good for you. Now get out of the way.

                  • It’s an interesting discussion. The thing is, the reason “cool” words sound naff when older people use them doesn’t really have anything to do with those words “not being cool” any more.

                    It’s simply that anyone trying to co-opt the language of a particular group, who isn’t a member of that group, is almost always going to end up sounding insincere and presumptuous. It’s not about specific words, it’s about social relationships.

                    I really don’t get the hate for the Internet Party using “awesome”. I’m 30. But that may be because I’m part of a very specific fandom …
                    http://youtu.be/d4gqsJ3Fz1k

                    • karol

                      For me getting old means no longer being concerned about what is or is not in fashion – it’s very liberating.

                    • Disraeli Gladstone

                      I do think there’s a certain amount of both actually being in play. Say “awesome” is still a commonly used “cool” word but one which an older person can sound insincere saying. “Awesome” though is slightly different because it can still be used very sincerely by an older person as well, but not in the way that Laila Harre and the Internet Party has been using it.

                      Similarly, I hear “far out” a fair bit during my day. It’s enjoying a little bit of a renaissance amongst a certain section of young people. But then you have words like “hip” which is nothing to do with “co-opting” language, it’s just a word that is no longer used or is “cool”.

                    • felix

                      Seems to me this is middle-aged people chastising young people for not conforming to what the middle-aged people think other young people will respond to, based on the middle-aged peoples’ experience with not being able to communicate with young people themselves.

                    • Disraeli Gladstone

                      Completely on the contrary to what I meant is if you were referring to me Felix (maybe you were talking about Hooton?).

                      I’m not criticising a single young person. I’m just poking fun at middle-aged people who think that they can sound “cool” instead of trying to understand and appeal to the needs and interest of young people.

                      I was just pointing out the Internet Party having “awesome” plastered everywhere and Laila Harre adopting the word in her interview just does feed into the Hooten created meme and sounds silly. It sounds silly to both a lot of old and young ears (though not all ears, of course).

                    • Disraeli Gladstone

                      … I think I’m the exact opposite of that. You’ve seriously misunderstood what I was talking about here, old chap.

                      (That last bit was intentional before you blow a fuse.)

                    • weka

                      Disraeli, have you considered that they’re using the word awesome, because they believe that this IS going to be awesome, as opposed to using it to try to connect with young people. I think ‘trying’ to connect with young people by changing one’s language is the problem. Better just to be real and oneself, which I think both Harre and KDC manage perfectly well.

                    • felix

                      Disraeli you’re out of your depth trying to lecture people you don’t understand on how to connect with people you don’t understand.

                    • Disraeli Gladstone

                      Of course I am, Felix. Whatever you say. You’ve constantly missed or not addressed the main part of all my posts, but sure, you go ahead with what you think.

                      @weka I’d be more generous to that theory if the Internet Party’s twitter bio didn’t include “most awesome political party”. That sounds something that’s been ran through marketing!

                    • weka

                      Of course it’s been via marketing, they’re a political party in an election year. That doesn’t mean they don’t also believe it.

      • Mike the Savage One 2.2.2

        Who cares about Hooton? Only the ill informed dare to give him credit.

  3. Mike the Savage One 3

    Thank you Karol. I have decided for myself that the Internet Party may be interesting, but does not really stand for enough policies that I expect from a party, new or not so new.

    I find some of the candidates skilled and interesting, but I feel that this is not quite the group of politicians I relate to and would vote.

    My personal political intentions are between Labour and Greens, so I will cast my vote accordingly, possibly do some bit of support, like leafleting.

    I wish the IP and their candidates well, as the list at least shows, they are honest and committed about what they stand for, and what they want changed.

    • Rodel 3.1

      Ms 1 I tend to agree with your positive thoughts. Wish them well, won’t vote for them but it would be interesting to have some of them alongside Labour. Still don’t support KDC though as a political force in New Zealand.

  4. Ad 4

    They would do OK at the United list conference, but they aren’t top 40 material racked up against the Green List, and not in the top 50 for Labour.

    Anyone else doing the Labour Auckland-Northland list conference this weekend?

  5. Clemgeopin 5

    I think the Internet party with this exciting list will give do quite well in the election. I will not be surprised if the party itself (with or without Mana alliance) will cross the 5% threshold.

    From disillusioned Nats=0.5%
    From disillusioned Labour=0.5%
    From disillusioned NZF=0.5%
    Disillusioned ACT, UF, Maori party=0.5%
    From soft greens=2%
    Previous non voters=1%
    The young, the geeks and well educated=1%

    Just musing………….

    • lurgee 5.1

      I don’t think the IP / Mana hybrid will trouble the 5% threshold. Even though I am almost committed to voting for them, having gotten over my initial gag reflex at the Kim Dotcom association.

      My hunch is that disillusioned voters from the two main parties are still tending to switch directly to the other main parties, not look to minor parties. New Zealanders are pretty conservative (small c) and the idea of voting Green is still strange and radical to those not already doing so. As for Mana or the IP … If they are feeling radical, they might occasionally vote for Winston, because he’s been around forever and has been in Government … Clarke’s dismissive attitude towards the Greens is coming back to haunt Labour, I think.

      National has been very successful at retaining its core support, and the voters that switched in 2008. Labour has … well, maintained its core support. It looks likely that Labur wil not be able to win back the defectors, nor will it manage to find the ‘missing million’ voters the dreamers fondly imagine are waiting about somewhere in South Auckland.

      Perhaps by 2017 the centre voters will become tired of voting for a party that doesn’t represent them at all and will look for someone else. It will be interesting to see if they return to Labour or if they then look more widely. 2017 or 2020 may be the first real MMP election in New Zealand. Like I said, Conservative. With a small C.

    • Disraeli Gladstone 5.2

      As I’ve said before:

      “I doubt any right-wing votes will go to the Internet Party now that it’s merged with MANA and has Laila Harre as leader.

      The Internet Party is definitely a left-wing party now. Which is both good (MANA isn’t necessarily be co-opted by a non-left party) and bad (the Internet Party isn’t going to take votes off National like Bomber was salivating about.).”

      What disillusioned National or ACT voter is now going to decide they want to vote for an Internet Party connected with Hone Harawira and led by Laila Harre? If they respected and agreed with those people, they wouldn’t be National or ACT voters.

      The Internet Party won’t take disillusioned votes from National, ACT, UF or New Zealand First.

      There’s two things which are likely to happen here with the Internet Party. One which is good for the Left and one which is bad.

      A: The Internet Party connects with the non-voter. They bring in 2-3% of non-voters and introduce them to the left-wing flock.

      B: The Internet Party cannibalises the left-wing vote. Sure, they get a decent result, but it just comes from Labour and the Greens and does nothing to helping a new left government.

      Well, there’s also Option C. Which is the Internet MANA alliance barely gets 2% and disappoints a whole lot of people on here.

      • karol 5.2.1

        Actually, the candidate list does not look to me like it’s particularly left wing. Many of the thumbnail bios don’t look like those of committed left wingers, except in a couple of cases.

        • Disraeli Gladstone 5.2.1.1

          I would agree with you entirely. But I don’t think it will matter.

          With Harre as leader and Harawira as a partner, I don’t think they’ll be able to shift the idea of them being a “left-wing” party in the eyes of “right-wing” voters.

          Which shouldn’t matter because the Internet Party’s best chance of success is connecting with non-voters. I harbour doubts about their ability to do that, but it’s at least a reasonable expectation. Moreso than expecting a small amount of National and ACT voters to go over to the party.

          • karol 5.2.1.1.1

            I think the candidates, regardless of whether they have a chance of being elected, will be the “ambassadors” who campaign for the party vote among the targeted potential voters – which seem to be mainly the young, the digitally connected, and the currently politically disengaged.

          • weka 5.2.1.1.2

            Disraeli, you are assuming that everyone that votes on the right is rightwing. There are people who are essentially apoliticial in terms of the left/right spectrum. I think there will be people that voted for National or Key in 2011 who will be happy to vote IP this time, esp non-baby boomer urban professionals and urban creative/counter culture types.

            • Disraeli Gladstone 5.2.1.1.2.1

              I consider myself within that non-baby boomer urban professionals/urban creative type and it certainly makes up a considerable amount of my social group outside and inside of work. There’s not really a whole lot of support for the Internet Party there. A fair chunk of creative people are off-putted by Dotcom and his attitude to copyright. Maybe if the Internet Party releases a well-thought out intellectual property reform policy that might change. The Greens are certainly doing a better job appealing to that demographic.

              And again, with young people who I work with, again I see an overestimating of how much they will support the Internet Party. There’s certainly a relevant section that is interested in them, but a lot of young people either don’t care at all (Internet Party or not) or already was political and are not swayed from their current choice.

              But I think that is their best chance of finding votes: the non-voter and the young. I just think people are overestimating how well the Internet Party will do.

              • weka

                I agree about the over-estimating. The same thing happened when HH left the Mp and set up Mana. But then I guess you have to talk up a new party to get even small amounts of votes.

                I think my point was more that there are people who don’t relate to the left/right spectrum and so can’t be dismissed as right wingers if they voted National last time.

                • Disraeli Gladstone

                  A true point. But I still think it’s a leap to expect even the apolitical floating voter who voted National 2011 to now vote for a Laila Harre/Hone Harawira/Kim Dotcom connected party.

          • Naki man 5.2.1.1.3

            I have to agree National and Act voters wont go near Hone the racist or La La Harre.

  6. Richard McGrath 6

    I wonder whether Dot Con has read excerpts from his autographed copy of Mein Kampf to any of them.

  7. veutoviper 7

    As I have commented several times on TS already, the IP have been following a process for selecting their candidates over the last few weeks which has been set out on their website and on their Twitter feed for anyone to see. (Ie I am not a member of IP but have been able to follow this by reading the website etc)

    In brief:

    Some weeks ago they called for applications from members to stand as candidates and recieved about 150 applications.

    They then held a series of initial assessment meetings around NZ open to members to meet and hear the applicants – one in each of Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, Hamilton, and four in Auckland.

    Today from midday to 6pm they are holding a meeting in Auckland (at ‘Q’ ?) where the shortlisted candidates will do their stuff to present as suitable candidates etc and the final candidates will be chosen by (I think but could be wrong) a combination of voting by members and decision of the IP executive

    Tickets to this event have been available to both members and the general public for a week or two. As of yesterday, there were only 20 tickets still available, according to Twitter. Apparently this event is going to be live streamed – presumably via their website.

    Presumably Laila Harre was selected as Leader by a different process – eg appointment by the executive.

    All final candidates will be paid at the same rate as a back bench MP for the duration of the election. Originally IP was looking at running 15 – 20 candidates, but this now appears to have been reduced to about 10, but I could be wrong on that.

    • veutoviper 7.1

      Correction – KDC has just tweeted that they will be selecting 15 candidates today at their “Candidate Idol”.

      More here

      http://t.co/kG96Y0AlQI

      • Disraeli Gladstone 7.1.1

        Interestingly that takes a hefty chunk out of Dotcom’s donation of $3m. MP’s salaries are $147,800. So weekly they get around $2,850. There’s around 15 weeks to the election, I think. So that’s $42,750 per each Internet Party candidate. If they’re picking fifteen candidates, that’s a cost of nearly $650,000.

        That’s about a fifth of Dotcom’s donation gone.

      • weka 7.1.2

        Thanks veuto, should be an interesting meeting. Do you now how the shortlist of 22 was chosen?

        Edit, just seen karol’s post. Looks a similar process to the GP except more Pop Idol than hippy democracy ie the power still largely remains with the IP exec rather than the membership.

      • yeshe 7.1.3

        live webcast at 1pm to 6pm here … live and innovative at least ! Refreshing and dare I say it, awesome 🙂 and IP members get to rate the candidates via special app …

        here there might be dragons …

        https://internet.org.nz/

    • karol 7.2

      Thanks. I do think it isn’t easy to find the information on the party’s website.

      There is this information about the candidate meetings.

      The rules are available from a small print link at the bottom of the web page. It includes this:

      5.1Every Member is entitled to attend, vote and actively participate in all meetings of the Internet Party, including Annual General Meetings, either in person or digitally.

      5.2Every Member who is in attendance at an Annual General meeting, either in person or digitally, is entitled to participate in the election of the Executive Committee of the Internet Party.

      5.3Every Member is entitled in participate in the selection of Party List candidates and Electorate Candidates, to the extent allowed by the process determined by the Executive Committee.

      5.4Every Member is entitled to actively contribute to the policy and manifesto development of the Internet Party in so far as such contribution aligns with the objectives of the Internet Party, these rules, and the process determined by the Executive Committee.

      5.5Each Member is entitled to one vote that may be exercised in any meeting or election or process determined by the Executive Committee.

      5.6Members may exercise the proxy votes of other members, either in person or digitally, provided they comply with any process for exercising proxy votes decided by the Party Secretary and notified to Members from time to time.

      12.1The Executive Committee shall determine the selection and approval of Party List candidates and Electoral candidates for election to Parliament.

      12.4The Internet Party’s Executive Committee shall produce the Party List. The process for selecting the Party List is:

      2.4.2.The Party Secretary shall call for nominations for the Party List in accordance with the time period and deadline set by the Executive Committee;

      12.4.3.Only Full members may be nominated for the Party List. Full members may nominate themselves for the Party List;

      12.4.4.At the close of nominations, the Executive Committee shall rank nominees and produce an “Indicative Party List”, with no less than 9 and no more than 121 candidates;

      12.4.5.The Party Secretary will distribute the “Indicative Party List” to members for consultation;

      12.4.6.Members will rank the candidates on the “Indicative Party List”, in accordance with their own preferences, and will return the ranked “Indicative Party List” to the Party Secretary within a time period set by the Executive Committee;

      12.4.7.Having regard to the ranked lists provided by members, the Executive Committee will produce a “Final Party List” at its sole discretion that will constitute the final Party List.

      12.5The Executive Committee will be responsible for determining the procedure for implementing the provisions of clause 12.4 and the Party Secretary must notify all members of that procedure prior to nominations being called for.

      Selecting Electorate Candidates

      12.6Once the Party List has been finalised, the Executive Committee may ask candidates on the Party List to stand in electorates as Electorate candidates.

      2.9In determining the ranking of candidates in the Final Party List, the Executive Committee shall actively maintain and promote economic, cultural, social, ethnic, age, geographic, and gender diversity, and will promote equality as far as is practicable.

      It looks to me like the Executive Committee reserves the right to the final choice of candidates and lists, with members being able to submit their preferences.

      The executive committee, after the inaugural year, looks to be chosen by the members….. I think. Although there are some unelected people in the committee? The visionary, or secretary?

      In the Internet Party’s second year, there will be an Annual General Meeting for Members to elect an Executive Committee as per these rules.

      […]
      8.7The Executive Committee shall consist of:
      8.7.1.The Party Visionary; and
      8.7.2.The Party President; and
      8.7.3.The Party Leader; and
      8.7.4.The Party Secretary; and
      8.7.5.If applicable, one representative elected by the Party’s parliamentary caucus; and
      8.7.6.Up to five Full members, elected by Members at an Annual General Meeting.

      […]
      8.15An election for all positions on the Executive Committee that are set out in clause 8.7, excluding the Party Visionary and the Party Secretary, will be held at the Annual General Meeting. Voting will be by simple majority.

      8.16The Party Secretary shall be responsible for determining voting processes and the conduct of the election for the purpose of implementing clause 8.15. These processes must be distributed to all members two months before the Annual General Meeting.

      Removal from Office
      8.17The Executive Committee may remove any member from its ranks, but not the Party Visionary or the Party Leader, by a 75% vote of all members of the Executive Committee at a Special General Meeting held for that purpose.

      • veutoviper 7.2.1

        Thanks for that Karol. I did not have time to search that out, and know that it took me some time to find the Constitution etc when I looked when they first started their website.

        Hoping to find time to watch a little of the live streaming later today to see the mix of people there etc – and because I am just plain nosy!

          • veutoviper 7.2.1.1.1

            Thanks.

            • yeshe 7.2.1.1.1.1

              just fyi … it starts at 1 pm, not noon as written in earlier post …

              • yeshe

                this is unexpected and very funny …. obama and key meeting in NZ, by IP .. how to wake the sleeping young voters … awesome !! (sorry)

                • karol

                  Laila Harre is making a very good speech. It has some intriguing aspects.

                  She is both promoting left wing values, and a non-left/right anti-establishment line of attack.

                  It will be interesting to see if the left/right agnostic youth vote will be influenced by the inclusion of the left wing values.

                  She includes policies like the tertiary education, and free education from early childhood to tertiary policy that doesn’t sound any different from the Greens education policy.

                  She ended by promoting a change to a Labour-Green-IMP government.

                • Kiwiri

                  Pretty funny in parts. Could have ended after the good nights at around 8’11”, although the last few seconds were ok and I could have done with more dance music.

                  No doubt, KDC has the money and talent to make some very good videos for IMP’s campaign that will go viral. Looking forward to that.

  8. aerobubble 8

    Be mindful. The internet is a global corporations wet dream. Linking a party of the down trodden with an internet mega does have its downsides. Sure its great politics. The digital divide is a problem for the poor and global corporations, but not for profit driven conservatives status quo types.

    So its nice to see Mana keeping some distance with IP.

    If it works, and is temporary, we will see internet access is an affordable right for all, but it won’t half destroy the cozy ACT-NAT relationship. hehe

  9. Scott1 9

    i would have thought candidates would be paid automatically, it seems pretty weird for the right to complain that political people get paid, like actual money, for doing a job… as someone said up thread – that allows people who might otherwise need money to live to campaign.

    The only problem is when that money implies they are controlled, but then again as long as that is 100% transparent it seems OK because all politicians owe obligations to some group or other.

    Anyway here is a good defense for the internet party – they could give them money as a gift and then declare the gift after he fact only if someone makes a big fuss about it.. kind of like Judith Collins (and a lot of current politicians) except without the legal obligation….

    Or he could not even bother and just say he could have – the John Banks defense.

  10. Wendigo Jane 10

    Amusing all the pearl-clutching about KDC’s “attitude to copyright”, his criminality etc. Not wanting to stereotype “young people” but when quizzed my teenage niece wasn’t even aware of such things or that (some) downloading is illegal. She wants a movie, a friend gives it on a stick and it’s “really annoying” that some turn out to be poor quality as they’ve been filmed in a cinema. And after all, there are a LOT of people around who’ve seen all of Game of Thrones.

    There are no longer any DVD rental shops in my downbeat neighbourhood but I noticed one still dominates the main street of a leafy white wealthy suburb across town. Who still rents/buys DVDs, who still sits down to watch broadcast TV, who pays for movies/music online (as opposed to getting it free)… Older people, the same old dominant voices with old ways of thinking.

  11. Richard McGrath 11

    Does anyone here really believe the Internet Mana candidates won’t be puppets of the fat German fraudster?

    • felix 11.1

      If you think Laila is anyone’s puppet you’re dreaming.

      And Hone? Jesus man, get a grip.

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