2023 Invercargill by-election
# 2023 Invercargill by-election

The 2023 Invercargill by-election is an upcoming by-election in New Zealand's Invercargill City Council. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Invercargill City councillor Nigel Skelt on 4 May 2023 following sexual harassment allegations. Voting will be held between 13 July and 4 August 2023.

## Background

On the night of 4 May 2023, Invercargill City councillor Nigel Skelt resigned from his position after fellow councillor Ria Bond threatened to resign if Skelt did not resign following allegations of sexual harassment. On 2 May 2023, Radio New Zealand reported that a female teenage employee at the ILT Stadium Southland had resigned on 17 February 2023 in response to Skelt's remarks about her physical appearance, naked jelly wrestling, and sexual reproduction. The former employee said she was upset by Skelt's remarks and no longer wanted to work alongside Skelt. At the time, Skelt was working as a stadium manager at ILT Stadium Southland. Radio New Zealand also reported that the Mayor of Invercargill Nobby Clark tried to diffuse the situation by paying the teenage employee's NZ$3,000 in lost income, offering the employee counseling and work, issuing a warning to Skelt, and negotiating a confidentiality agreement with the employee. The young woman's parent criticised Clark in a letter for allegedly prioritising Skelt and the stadium's reputation over the hurt and damage experienced by the employee. The incident became public knowledge following a Local Government Official Information Meeting Act media request filed on 29 March 2023.

Bond welcomed Skelt's decision to resign, stating that "no person should be forced to work with someone who has done the things that he's done." The Invercargill City Council stated that Skelt's resignation would trigger a by-election, which was expected to cost approximately NZ$120,000. Invercargill's last by-election was held in 2020-2021 in response to Toni Biddle's resignation.

## Candidates

By the time that the deadline for nominations closed on 8 June 2023, 14 candidates had submitted their nominations to contest the 2023 by-election:

* Asha Dutt: law graduate and partner of former Mayor of Invercargill Tim Shadbolt
* Terry King: former Southern District Health Board member, Invercargill City councillor, and Grey Power national president
* Ian Reeves: former police officer, supermarket manager, and musician
* Steve Broad: More FM broadcaster, former teacher, and manager
* Sebastien Fabre: hospitality worker and industrial worker
* Tom Morton: TikToker
* Rob Te Maiharoa: Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) carpentry teacher
* David Meades: carpenter
* David Hicks, environmental consultant and fast food store owner
* Carl Heenan: supermarket worker and community volunteer
* Graham Lewis, former councillor and pharmacist
* Andrea Murrell, migrant community worker
* Lisa Tou-McNaughton, arts organiser
* David Pottinger, Fonterra project manager

## Campaigning

The 2023 Invercargill by-election's campaign launch began on 1 July 2023. The Holy Trinity Church hosted a campaign launch meeting that was attended by seven candidates and 20 members of the public. The campaign launch covered several topics including the Three Waters reform programme, soup kitchens, Invercargill's Splash Palace changing room policy and Mayor Clark's participation in Julian Batchelor's controversial "Stop Co-Governance" meeting. A further ten meetings were scheduled to be held in Invercargill before voting commences on 13 July.

