Kharag Singh trails in Takanini cliffhanger as Radhakrishnan struggles in Maungakiekie
Takanini's contest remained too close to call late on Saturday night.
Just 796 votes separate Singh from victory in Takanini, while former minister Radhakrishnan trails by 2,746 in Maungakiekie.
Labour’s Indian-origin candidate Kharag Singh is locked in a tight contest with National’s Rima Nakhle in the South Auckland electorate of Takanini, while former minister Priyanca Radhakrishnan is trailing by more than 2,700 votes in her bid to reclaim Maungakiekie.
At about 10.25pm on Saturday, with 61.5 per cent of votes counted in Takanini, Nakhle had secured 8,027 votes against Singh’s 7,231 – giving the sitting National MP a lead of just 796 votes, according to the Electoral Commission’s preliminary count.
In Maungakiekie, National’s Greg Fleming had opened a considerably larger lead over Radhakrishnan, securing 13,091 votes against her 10,345, with 71.6 per cent of votes counted.
Fleming’s 2,746-vote advantage came despite Labour leading National in the electorate’s party vote, 31.89 per cent to 30.71 per cent.
The contrasting results have particular significance for Labour’s Indian-origin representation, with Singh seeking his first term in Parliament.
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Radhakrishnan is attempting to win back the electorate she captured in 2020 before losing it to Fleming in 2023. She is placed 18th on party list, and is very much in the reckoning for another shot at Parliament even if she loses the electorate contest.
Takanini's changing political loyalties
Takanini, created ahead of the 2020 election, has already changed hands once in its short history. Labour’s Dr Neru Leavasa won the inaugural contest before National’s Nakhle defeated him by more than 8,000 votes in 2023.
The electorate has one of the country’s largest Indian-origin populations, with nearly 40 per cent of residents identifying as Indian. Its Māori and Pasifika communities, alongside a growing migrant population, also make it one of Auckland’s most diverse constituencies.
Singh, a businessman and community advocate, has lived and worked in South Auckland for nearly four decades. Born in India, he arrived in New Zealand in 1987 and built a career in retail after initially working in the printing industry.
Radhakrishnan faces another setback
For Radhakrishnan, the preliminary results indicate a more difficult contest in Maungakiekie, where she is attempting to reverse her 2023 defeat.
The former minister first entered Parliament as a Labour list MP in 2017 and won Maungakiekie in Labour’s landslide victory in 2020. She lost the electorate three years later but returned to Parliament through the party list.
Radhakrishnan has remained one of Labour’s most prominent Indian-origin politicians, having held ministerial portfolios including diversity, inclusion and ethnic communities, and community and voluntary sector.
The Maungakiekie results also show a split between electorate and party preferences. While Fleming leads the candidate contest, Labour has secured a larger share of the party vote than National.
Different paths to Parliament
The two contests also highlight the different parliamentary pathways available to Singh and Radhakrishnan under New Zealand’s mixed-member proportional electoral system.
Radhakrishnan is ranked 18th on Labour’s party list, while Singh sits much lower at 61st.
As Awaaz previously reported, Labour has placed another Indian-origin candidate, former police superintendent Rakesh Naidoo, at number 13 on its list.
The rankings mean Radhakrishnan and Naidoo also have routes into Parliament through the party vote, while Singh’s parliamentary prospects are much more closely tied to the Takanini electorate result.
The preliminary counts remain subject to change, with further counting and special votes still to be incorporated into the official results. The Electoral Commission expects to publish the official election results on November 27.
