DemocracyNZ

DemocracyNZ is a registered political party in New Zealand. The party was established and led by former National Party MP Matt King following the anti-vaccination occupation at parliament.[1][3] The party claims to be centrist[4] and stand for democracy, equality, and unity for New Zealanders.[5]

DemocracyNZ
LeaderMatt King[1]
FounderMatt King[1]
FoundedMarch 2022 (2022-03)
Registered13 October 2022
Split fromNational Party
IdeologyAnti-vaccine mandate[2]
MPs in the House of Representatives
0 / 120
Website
democracynz.org

On 12 October 2022, the party's registration was approved by the Electoral Commission.[6][4]

History

Background
Matt King speaking at anti-vaccine mandate occupation in Wellington

In February 2022, King announced that he would join Convoy 2022, a protest against COVID-19 vaccination mandates on Parliament's grounds. King said that his main concern was the vaccine mandates, and that the anti-vaccination component of the protest was "very small". The National Party distanced themselves from King's remarks, saying that "Matt King is no longer an MP for the National Party" and that the party "does not support the actions or the anti-vaccination messages of those involved in Convoy 2022." King said in an interview that he knew that his position could end hopes of re-selection as a National Party candidate but that he needed to stand on his principles.[7] He later resigned from the National Party due to this position.[8]

In May 2022, King was trespassed from Parliament grounds for two years after attending the 2022 anti-vaccine mandate protest outside Parliament.[9] The Spinoff editor Toby Manhire criticised the Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard and the Parliament security manager Bridget Lord's decision to trespass King; opining that it violated the freedom to protest and played into the hands of anti-vaccine protesters.[10] The trespass notice was subsequently withdrawn by the Speaker.[11]

In March 2022, following the Wellington protests, King launched a new party called DemocracyNZ.[12][13] He described it as standing on a platform of "democracy, unity, freedom of choice, freedom of expression, access and inclusion" and said it sought to "uphold the Bill of Rights". According to King, about 2000 people signed up to become members within 48 hours of the party's launch.[14]

Electoral history

The party's first opportunity to stand was in the 2022 Tauranga by-election, but King announced the party would not be contending as it was only recently formed.[15]

King said that while the party would aim to reach the 5% threshold at the next general election, he saw the most realistic option as winning his former electorate of Northland.[4]

References
  1. Longley, Mark (19 March 2022). "Former National MP Matt King launches new political party". Newshub. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  2. Piper, Denise (18 March 2022). "'We stand for democracy': Ex-National MP Matt King launches anti-mandate party". Stuff. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  3. Piper, Denise (23 March 2022). "Covid-19: Why Matt King thinks his anti-mandate, pro-rights party is still needed". Stuff. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  4. Neilson, Michael (13 October 2022). "Former National MP Matt King's new party Democracy NZ officially registered". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  5. Deena Coster (20 July 2022). "Democracy NZ not just a 'one-issue party' - leader". Stuff. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  6. "Registration of DemocracyNZ party and logo". New Zealand Electoral Commission. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  7. "Covid 19 Omicron outbreak: Matt King is set to join the protest outside Parliament". The New Zealand Herald. 11 February 2022. Archived from the original on 11 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  8. Neilson, Michael (12 February 2022). "Matt King joins Parliament protest, reveals he has resigned from National". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022.
  9. Mutch McKay, Jessica (2 May 2022). "Former National MP banned from Parliament grounds for 2 years". 1 News. TVNZ. Archived from the original on 3 May 2022.
  10. Manhire, Toby (3 May 2022). "Trespassing former MPs from parliament is a gift to the occupation crowd". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 2 May 2022. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  11. Ensor, Jamie (4 May 2022). "Speaker Trevor Mallard withdraws five trespass orders related to Parliament protest". Newshub. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  12. Alexander, Mitchell (17 February 2022). "Former National MP Matt King plans to launch new political party". Newshub. Archived from the original on 21 April 2022.
  13. Piper, Denise (18 March 2022). "'We stand for democracy': Ex-National MP Matt King launches anti-mandate party". Stuff. Archived from the original on 3 May 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  14. Piper, Denise (2022-03-23). "Covid-19: Why Matt King thinks his anti-mandate, pro-rights party is still needed". Stuff. Archived from the original on 3 May 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-26.
  15. Manhire, Toby (21 March 2022). "The people vying to build a political force out of the parliament occupation fury". The Spinoff. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.