Boos, an eviction and a disruptive slime monster: Christchurch’s mayoral race heats up

Boos, an eviction and a disruptive slime monster were all part of the latest lively debate in Christchurch’s mayoral race.

A rowdy, sell-out crowd of 180 people packed the Lyttelton Arts Factory on Saturday night to hear from four mayoral candidates and others standing for council and community board seats on the Christchurch City Council and Environment Canterbury.

It took just 93 seconds for mayoral candidate Carl Bromley to be booed and told to “go away” by the crowd.

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The audience took exception to his comments about democracy. Bromley, a supporter of anti-vaccine group Voices for Freedom and far-right online channel Counterspin Media, whose hosts appeared in the Christchurch District Court on Wednesday charged with distributing an “objectionable publication”, said democracy in New Zealand had been “smashed”.

“I didn’t sign up to live in a communist country or a fascist country,” he told the crowd. “We’re here to live in a democracy. I hear booing but I’m here for democracy folks.”

Mayoral candidate Peter Wakeman was not invited to the event, but showed up anyway, and was quickly told to leave the stage by host Shay Horay. He managed to call out a few words before his exit.

That left David Meates, Phil Mauger, The Wizard and Bromley on stage for the event organised by the Lyttelton Harbour Business Association. Eleven candidates are vying for the mayoralty.

The Wizard succeeded in at least one election pledge on the night – to cheer people up. Many of his responses elicited a laugh from the crowd, especially his answer on whether the city council was too bureaucratic.

“Vote for me and you’ll see what happens next,” he said. “I am the expert bureaucratic destroyer.”

A person dressed up as a slime monster, to highlight polluted waterways, sporadically yelled out “slime” throughout the night.

During a rapid-fire question session, featuring toy laser gun buzzers, candidates struggled to answer some hyper-local questions, although the crowd helped out by giving away the answers.

Bromley’s toy gun would not turn off at the end and he asked the host to take it away before the police raided him again. Police seized his rifle and ammunition during a raid of his Avondale home on New Year’s Eve.

The Wizard did not answer any of these questions and the 89-year-old joked it was because he had fallen asleep.

There were serious parts to the evening including when candidates were asked their views on cycleways, and to disclose any councillors they were supporting.

Meates said cycleways were an important part of transport infrastructure. He found the cars versus bicycles debate puzzling, because both were needed.

Mauger said he was not against cycleways but was against the money spent on them.

Meates pointed out that 0.07% of rates would be spent on cycleways this year.

The Wizard was not happy with “concrete chunks” all over the place.

When asked if candidates were endorsing any councillors, Meates said he was not.

“It really does not matter whether you are right, left or Green or even Act you have to be able to work with whoever you have got,” Meates said. His response drew the most generous applause –a theme throughout the night.

Mauger said it was no secret that he had a group of “like-minded people”.

He has previously endorsed 13 candidates across the city, but did not name them on Saturday night, instead he said he was endorsing “anyone who wants to get on the council and pull the rope in the same direction as me”.

Candidates were asked what they admired about outgoing Mayor Lianne Dalziel, who has been in the role for nine years.

Bromley said he did not know her very well but “she has a very genuine warm smile and she’s very well dressed”.

Meates said Dalziel had been a passionate advocate for the city and Mauger said he had a lot of faith in her and what she had done for the city.

The Wizard said Dalziel was a good debater and always friendly to him, but got “caught up in politics”.

At one point, candidates were provided with plastic building blocks and given two minutes rebuild the last part of Christchurch.

Meates built a green space depicting the Ōtākaro-Avon River red zone corridor and Banks Peninsula with a cycleway through it.

Mauger built an area inside the four avenues where he believed intensification should be focused.

Bromley built a tree symbolising the growth and healing the city needs and The Wizard built a totem pole with a raven on the top.