Matua Kahurangi
Māori historian, protector of whakapapa. Hunter, fisher, kaitiaki of the whenua. Staunch supporter of the Treaty Principles Bill.
I know what you’re thinking: How could a Māori vote for @actparty? Blasphemy! Treason! Call the kaumātua and arrange a hui! And yet, here I stand (or sit, depending on whether you imagine me writing this dramatically or casually). I, a proud Māori from Te Tai Tokerau, cast my vote for David Seymour and ACT. And let me tell you, the reaction has been nothing short of legendary.
My whānau and iwi overwhelmingly voted for the Māori Party – well, at least the ones who actually bothered to get off the couch and vote. Let’s be honest, a fair few were more interested in a beer at the Roadrunner Tavern than a trip to the polling booth. But me? I went against the grain. And for that, I’ve been called a traitor, a sellout, a wannabe Pākehā, and – my personal favourite – a colonial sympathizer.
All this outrage, yet I only did what every so-called democracy-loving Kiwi should do: I voted for the party that best represented my views. And those views are simple – New Zealand should be one united country, not a land divided by race-based policies and elite Māori bureaucrats who have turned Treaty settlements into a never-ending industry of handouts and nepotism.
The Left’s Manufactured Outrage
The Māori Party and their mates on the left claim to speak for all Māori, but do they really? If you watched the protests against ACT’s Treaty Principles Bill, you’d think that every Māori in the country was foaming at the mouth, ready to defend the sacred status quo. But surprise, surprise – the legacy media conveniently ignored people like me. A Māori who actually supports David Seymour? That doesn’t fit the narrative.
And let’s talk about those “grassroots” protests. Organised by elite Māori like John Tamihere and funded by the very system that keeps them in power, these protests were less about the people and more about the privileged few who benefit from racial division. The ones who sit at the top of iwi corporations, securing fat government contracts for their cousins while the rest of us watch the scraps fall through the cracks.
Equality, Not Division
David Seymour isn’t trying to take away Māori rights – he’s simply asking the country to have an honest conversation about what the Treaty actually means in 2025. Not what the politicians want it to mean, not what the grievance industry insists it means, but what it was actually intended to do: unite Māori and Pākehā, not keep us in separate lanes forever.
ACT’s approach is about treating everyone equally, not giving special treatment based on ancestry. But in today’s political climate, equality is apparently a radical idea. How dare we ask for a country where race doesn’t determine government policy!
Māori Leadership or Māori Elitism?
The real tragedy isn’t ACT’s policies – it’s the fact that elite Māori leaders have turned Treaty settlements into their personal piggy bank. These are the same people who tell us we should be grateful for the millions (billions?) flowing into iwi hands, even though somehow, it never seems to trickle down to the average Māori struggling to pay rent in Kaikohe.
How many times have we seen family members hiring family members, contracts going to the bros, and funding disappearing into the bureaucratic abyss of iwi corporations? Meanwhile, everyday Māori are still told that all our problems are the fault of colonization. Sure, let’s blame Captain Cook for everything while ignoring the corruption happening right under our noses.
Time for a Reality Check
So, yes – I voted for ACT. And I’d do it again. Because this country needs a serious reality check. Māori aren’t a monolith and not all of us believe in the grievance industry that keeps elite Māori in power while the rest of us are told to wait our turn for the trickle-down magic to kick in. @dbseymour stands for real equality. That’s why I, a middleclass Māori from Northland, support him. Call me whatever names you like – but at least I’m thinking for myself.
This article was originally published on the author’s X account.
