The 2013 Hamilton mayoral election was part of the

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

and wider New Zealand local elections. On 12 October 2013, elections were held for the Mayor of Hamilton and other local government roles. The incumbent,

Julie Hardaker Julie Hardaker was the Mayor of Hamilton, New Zealand, from October 2010 to October 2016. Born in New Zealand, she was self-employed in Australia in the 1980s. After graduating from the University of Waikato, she joined the Hamilton law firm McC ...

, ran against seven other candidates and was re-elected with 43.6% of the vote, a 2,911-vote majority over Ewan Wilson who won 35.5%.

Candidates

Eight candidates stood for election: *Chatha Arshad *Tony Dixon *Jack Gielen (The Sovereignty Party) *Ian Hanley *

*Dave Macpherson *Tim Wikiriwhi (Affordable Waikato) *Ewan Wilson

Campaign

All of the mayoral candidates except Wikiriwhi took part in a debate held at the

Waikato Institute of Technology The Waikato Institute of Technology, also known as Wintec, is an institute of technology based in New Zealand's Waikato region. Wintec offers over 130 degrees, diplomas and certificates. Wintec specialises in applied tertiary training for nurses ...

and chaired by ''

Waikato Times The ''Waikato Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Hamilton, New Zealand and owned by media business Stuff Ltd. It has a circulation to the greater Waikato region and became a tabloid paper in 2018. The newspaper has won the title of Ne ...

'' editor Jonathan MacKenzie on 10 September 2013. According to ''Waikato Times'' editor Daniel Adams, about 200 people attended the debate, and the main issues were

water metering Water metering is the practice of measuring water use. Water meters measure the volume of water used by residential and commercial building units that are supplied with water by a public water supply system. They are also used to determine flo ...

and

water fluoridation Water fluoridation is the controlled adjustment of fluoride to a public water supply solely to reduce tooth decay. Fluoridated water contains fluoride at a level that is effective for preventing cavities; this can occur naturally or by adding ...

. The Waikato Chamber of Commerce and the Hamilton branch of the Property Council of New Zealand hosted a debate between Hardaker, Wilson and Macpherson on 17 September. The debate was chaired by the Property Council's vice-president Graham Dwyer and was attended by over 100 businesspeople, according to Kashka Tunstall of the ''Waikato Times''.

Opinion polls

A ''

'' opinion poll completed on 26 August 2013 had Hardaker at 20% support, Wilson 10% and Macpherson 6%, with 49% of voters undecided. A second poll by the ''Waikato Times'', completed on 24 September 2013 showed Hardaker steady at 20% and Wilson and Macpherson moving up to 18% and 8%, respectively. On 28 September, the day that the ''Waikato Times second poll was published, Macpherson withdrew from the race and asked his supporters to back Wilson.

Results

Note that blank votes are not included. Swing is compared to 2010 results.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton Mayoral Election, 2013 2013 elections in New Zealand Mayoral elections in New Zealand Politics of Hamilton, New Zealand October 2013 events in New Zealand