Greg Bouwer
IINZ
The forced removal of Israel-born New Zealander Karin Horen from the Devonport-Takapuna local board ticket A Fresh Approach is a watershed moment for New Zealand democracy. It is a moment that should disturb not only the Jewish community but every citizen who values free speech, democratic participation, and the principle that people should be judged by their merits, not by imported geopolitical battles.
Horen, a respected social advocate, cancer survivor, and mother of three, was dropped less than two weeks before the election, despite already being featured on billboards and campaign materials. The reason? Her posts on social media expressing support for Israel were circulated within pro-Palestinian activist networks, who denounced her as spreading ‘propaganda’. The backlash, stoked online and amplified in closed groups, escalated into what her campaign colleagues described as a “security concern”. Auckland Council’s security team and police became involved, monitoring threats and advising caution.
The fact that a local election about playgrounds, libraries, and rubbish collection spiralled into this demonstrates how vulnerable New Zealand’s democratic spaces have become to intimidation. Instead of standing by their candidate, A Fresh Approach distanced themselves, citing fear for their families’ safety. Their decision may have been understandable at a human level – but it sets a dangerous precedent. If activists can mobilise threats, amplify smears, and pressure political teams into dropping candidates, then democracy itself is being outsourced to mob pressure.
The Disturbing Normalisation of Intimidation
The reaction from across New Zealand’s civic landscape highlights the deeper problem.
- The NZ Jewish Council rightly condemned the incident as “deeply disturbing”, pointing out that the Gaza conflict has nothing to do with a Devonport-Takapuna local board. The message is clear: Jewish New Zealanders should not be punished for events thousands of kilometres away.
- The Free Speech Union warned that Horen is a “victim”, a candidate targeted not for corruption or misconduct, but for expressing her views and heritage.
- Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa co-chair John Minto, however, celebrated the outcome. He described her removal as “the very essence of freedom of speech”, twisting the concept beyond recognition. Free speech means the right to debate ideas openly – not to threaten, intimidate, or exclude opponents from democratic participation.
When the public sphere accepts the idea that Jewish New Zealanders may be driven from candidacy because they are ‘liabilities’, we are already witnessing the corrosion of democratic principles by imported hatreds.
The Silencing of Jewish Voices
Karin Horen’s case is not isolated. It reflects a broader and growing pattern. Around the world, Jewish candidates, academics, and community leaders are increasingly pressured into silence, excluded from coalitions, or smeared for their identity and connection to Israel. What has now arrived on Auckland’s North Shore is a trend that European and North American Jewish communities have been facing for years: the deliberate strategy of conflating support for Israel’s right to exist with extremism, then using intimidation to discredit or exclude Jewish voices.
This is not principled debate – it is targeted harassment. When pro-Palestinian activists celebrate the exclusion of a Jewish New Zealander from standing in her community, they reveal not strength of argument but the weakness of intimidation tactics. It is antisemitism in practice: treating Jewish citizens differently because of who they are and what they believe about Israel.
Imported Conflicts, Local Consequences
New Zealand is not Gaza, nor Jerusalem, nor Ramallah. Yet this incident shows how conflicts abroad are being imported into our political spaces. Instead of debating local issues, candidates are attacked over their ethnicity, heritage, or opinions on Middle Eastern politics. This is profoundly corrosive.
It also undermines the very values New Zealand claims to uphold on the world stage. Foreign Minister Winston Peters, in his address to the United Nations, made clear that New Zealand will not recognise a Palestinian state while Hamas still rules Gaza and peace is nowhere in sight. Yet at home, activists demand ideological conformity, weaponising social media to enforce silence. The contradiction is glaring: while New Zealand’s official policy resists premature recognition of a Palestinian state, at the local level Jewish candidates are treated as fair game for harassment.
Why This Matters for All New Zealanders
Some might dismiss this as ‘just local politics’. But that misses the point. The silencing of one Jewish candidate sets a precedent. If intimidation is allowed to succeed here, it will be used again – against other minorities, against women, against anyone deemed inconvenient to activist groups.
This is not about whether one agrees with Karin Horen’s views. It is about whether Jewish New Zealanders – and indeed all New Zealanders – have the right to participate in politics without fear of harassment or exclusion. The chilling effect of this incident is real: why would any Jewish New Zealander now put themselves forward for office, knowing they may be hounded out of a campaign for expressing mainstream views about Israel?
Democracy requires more than ballots and campaign flyers. It requires the courage to protect space for diverse voices, especially those under pressure. It requires rejecting the idea that security threats or intimidation should dictate who can or cannot stand for office.
A Call to Action
The Israel Institute of New Zealand calls on political leaders, community groups, and civil society to reject this dangerous precedent. We must ensure that Jewish New Zealanders are free to stand for public office without harassment, intimidation, or fear.
What message do we want to send to the next generation? That their voices will be silenced if they are Jewish, or if they support Israel? Or that New Zealand is still a place where democratic participation is protected, even when debate is fierce?
If we do not act, intimidation will become the new normal. And democracy in New Zealand will be poorer for it.
The silencing of Karin Horen should not be the final word. It should be the wake-up call.
This article was originally published by the Israel Institute of New Zealand.
