The 1995 Wellington City mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. In 1995, elections were held for the Mayor of Wellington plus other local government positions. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.
Background
Sitting Mayor Fran Wilde was not renominated by the Labour Party with local members opining that she had drifted too far from Labour policies during her term as mayor. Instead members nominated Eastern ward councillor Hazel Armstrong, though she declined to stand for mayor or the city council.[1] Wilde responded by stating she would stand as an independent if she decided to stand for a second term. She made clear she still supported the Labour Party and praised its leader Helen Clark and her leadership of the party.[2] Clark said Wilde would have her support if she decided to run as an independent candidate.[3]
Ultimately Wilde retired from the role after just one term. When standing in 1992 she intended to run for a second term and stated the decision not to run again was the hardest decision she ever had to make. She cited a wish to gain more privacy and the only way to do so would be to leave the mayoralty.[4] Her decision prompted a record thirteen candidates to run for the position. The Labour Party eventually chose Elizabeth Tennet, the Member of Parliament for Island Bay, as its candidate for the election. It was the last time the Labour Party was to field a mayoral candidate until 2016. Wilde did not support Tennet's candidacy thinking she was not right for the role and she was only standing for mayor because the Island Bay seat was being abolished at the next general election. Tennet and another MP, Graham Kelly, described Wilde as a turncoat for her criticisms.[5]
The former chairman of the now defunct Wellington Harbour Board Nigel Gould was selected as the Citizens' Association candidate, beating out shoe retailer Mark Blumsky and ratepayer advocate Jack Ruben for the nomination. Blumsky was not dissuaded and immediately declared his candidacy as an independent.[6]
The election saw Mark Blumsky win office as Wellington's Mayor. He won a much larger majority than expected, with media anticipating a neck-and-neck result between himself and Tennet.[7] The 1995 elections also saw the decline of the long established Citizens' Association electoral ticket. Gould finished in a disappointing fourth place for mayor and only four Citizens' ticket candidates won seats in the council, a record low.[8] The ticket did not contest another mayoral election and would disband soon after.
