Peeni Henare not contesting Tāmaki Makaurau at election

Senior Labour MP and former minister Peeni Henare won't be contesting the Tāmaki Makaurau seat in the election this year.

Henare did not put his name forward to be the party's candidate in the Māori seat, and the deadline for candidate nominations has now passed.

It's unclear whether Henare intends to run as a list-only candidate, or bow out of politics all together.

The news comes as the party finalises its candidate selections and in the wake of the resignation of another Senior Labour MP, Adrian Rurawhe, from politics.

Henare entered Parliament in 2014, winning the the Tāmaki Makaurau seat over the Māori party. He held onto the seat for nearly a decade, before being ousted by Te Pāti Māori's Takutaki Tarsh Kemp in 2023 by a slim margin.

He contested the seat in the Tāmaki Makaurau by-election in 2025, following Kemp's death, but lost to Oriini Kaipara who received around twice as many votes.

During the by-election he batted away suggestions of a Labour leadership bid, but didn't rule it out.

At the time Henare said the current leader Chris Hipkins had his full support.

During the previous Labour government, he held portfolios such as Defence, Whānau Ora, Civil Defence, Tourism and ACC.

Henare has been approached for comment.

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