Kahurangi Carter | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Carter in 2023 | |
| Member of theNew Zealand Parliament forGreenparty list | |
| Assumed office 14 October 2023 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1983 or 1984 (age 40–41) |
| Political party | Green |
Kahurangi Carter (born 1983 or 1984) is a New Zealand politician, representing theGreen Party of Aotearoa New Zealand as a Member of Parliament since the2023 New Zealand general election.[1]
Carter was born in 1983 or 1984[2] and is ofNgāti Maniapoto andTainui descent.[3][4] She was born and lived in ruralWaikato until she was twelve, when her family moved to Auckland'sNorth Shore.[5] She studied psychology and philosophy at theUniversity of Auckland.[3] Carter is a zero-waste advocate, who worked for theMinistry for the Environment.[4][6] She trained as an actor in New York, and appeared in a controversial promotional video as part of theChorus Gigatown competition.[5][7] Two of Carter's family members were involved in the Christchurch rebuild as structural engineers, and Carter "fell in love with" the city and moved there in 2021.[3]
| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023–present | 54th | List | 14 | Green | |
Carter was encouraged to enter politics byChlöe Swarbrick.[3] She was also inspired by her son's concerns about climate change and property ownership.[3] In the 2023 general election, Carter stood in theChristchurch Central electorate, and was placed 14th on the Green Party list. She said she wasn't running an electorate campaign, planning to do so in 2026 instead, but "Christchurch Central just embraced" her.[3] She entered Parliament on the list when the Green Party picked up a larger share of the party vote than predicted in the preliminary results.[5] The final results on 3 November confirmed her election to Parliament on the party list.[8]
In late November 2023, Carter assumed the Green Party's Zero Waste, Children, Disability Issues, Rainbow Communities, Community and Voluntary Sector, Arts, Culture and Heritage,Christchurch Issues spokesperson portfolios. She also became the party'sDeputy Musterer.[9]
In November 2024, Carter became the sponsor of the Green Party's Copyright (Parody and Satire) Amendment Bill, which proposed allowing copyrighted works to be used for parody, satire andmemes. On 8 November 2024, the bill was pulled from Parliament's ballot. Carter said that the bill would "protect artists' right to freedom of speech, and in doing so helps protect our democracy."[10]
Issues Carter sees as important for Christchurch include protections for people in rental housing, wage increases, affordable city living, public transport, and waste minimisation.[3]
Carter's hobbies include swimming and dancing. She has two teenage children.[5]
