2025 Hutt City Council election

• 4 July 2025: Nominations for candidates opened • 1 August 2025: Nominations for candidates closed at 12 pm • 9 September 2025: Voting documents were posted and voting opened • 11 October 2025: Voting closed at 12 pm and progress/preliminary results were published • 16–19 October 2025: Final results were declared. == Background ==

Positions up for election Voters in the city elected the mayor of Lower Hutt, 12 city councillors from 7 wards, and the members of two community boards (Eastbourne and Wainuiomata). Representation review Following the recommendations of an independent panel, The council decided to increase the number of councillors elected from the general wards from six to seven, decrease the number of councillors elected from the at-large ward from six to five, and to disestablish the Petone, Wainuiomata and Eastbourne community boards. However, a review of these proposals by the Local Government Commission determined that the Wainuiomata and Eastbourne community boards would remain and only the Petone community board would be disestablished. Māori wards referendum The council voted in 2023 to establish a Māori ward for the 2025 elections. The National-led coalition government passed legislation on Māori wards in July 2024, which reinstated the requirement that councils must hold a referendum before establishing Māori wards or constituencies; The council voted to affirm their decision to establish the Māori constituency, thereby triggering a referendum on the constituency to be held alongside the 2025 elections. Amalgamation referendum An indicative referendum was held alongside the election regarding potential amalgamation of the council with Wellington City Council, Upper Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council and Greater Wellington Regional Council. == Campaign ==

Incumbents not seeking re-election • Campbell Barry, mayor since 2019 • Josh Briggs, councillor since 2016 • Gabriel Tupou, councillor since 2022, is instead standing for Greater Wellington Regional Council Mayor Incumbent mayor Campbell Barry decided not to seek re-election for a third term as mayor. Four candidates contested the position: • Brady Dyer, incumbent councillor for the at-large ward since 2019. • Ken Laban, Greater Wellington regional councillor for the Lower Hutt constituency since 2013 and former mayoral candidate in 2007. • Karen Morgan, incumbent councillor for the at-large ward since 2022 and former principal of Taita College. • Prabha Ravi, 2022 council candidate for the United Hutt ticket and founder and artistic director of Natraj School of Dance. Councillors Mana Kairangi ki Tai Māori ward Mana Kairangi ki Tai Māori ward returned one councillor to the city council. Western ward The Western ward returned one councillor to the city council. Northern ward The Northern ward returned two councillors to the city council. As the number of candidates did not exceed the number of positions available, Mitchell and Shaw were re-elected. Central ward The Central ward returned two councillors to the city council. Harbour ward The Harbour ward returned one councillor to the city council. As the only candidate, Lewis was re-elected unopposed. Wainuiomata ward The Wainuiomata ward returned one councillor to the city council. As the only candidate, Brown was re-elected unopposed. At-large ward Five councillors were elected at-large to the city council. == Results ==

Overall turnout was 41.56%, with 33,038 voting papers returned. Summary Mayor Sports commentator and former councillor Fauono Ken Laban was elected mayor, becoming New Zealand's first Pasifika mayor. He won 8,704 votes to Brady Dyer's 6,974 votes, Karen Morgan's 5,529 votes, and Prabha Ravi's 3,608 votes. ==See also==