Electorate size wise,
Te Tai Tonga is the biggest of all Maori electorates
with three candidates vying for the seat
and the right to carry Te Tai Tonga issues to parliament.
Reporter Hania Douglas has been assigned to this electorate.
Let's now take a look at her first report.
From Wellington, the seat of political power,
across the Cook Strait to Picton,
down from Christchurch,
and all the way down to Stewart Island,
this is the Te Tai Tonga electorate.
The Te Tai Tonga electorate was established in 1996,
with a voting pool of almost 34,000.
But the size of the electorate
means that the issues affecting every area also covers a huge range.
Create jobs for our youth.
But their biggest issue perhaps is the sheer size of the electorate,
with 21 general seats being represented
in the one Te Tai Tonga electorate.
Residents of the small town of Blenheim say
that having such a vast electorate
means that sometimes small towns like them
are forgotten at the political table.
Stats say there are only about 15,000 Maori speakers
in the electorate,
the lowest number of all seven Maori electorates.
Labour's Rino Tirikatene is the incumbent,
having won the seat from the Maori Party's Rahui Katene in 2011.
His opponents are Mei Reedy-Taare, new candidate for the Maori Party.
And Metiria Turei, former leader of the Greens.
This means that whoever wins the seat has a lot of area to cover,
a lot of people to represent, a lot of expectations to meet
for the lucky candidate who'll end up in here.
Hania Douglas, Te Karere.