Claudette Hauiti (born 8 May 1961) is a New Zealand journalist, broadcaster and political commentator. She was the producer of the award winning programme ''Children of the Revolution.'' Hauiti was a New Zealand

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

and member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

in 2013 and 2014 as a member of the National Party.

Early life

Hauiti was born on 8 May 1961 in the St Helens Hospital in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

. She grew up in the suburb of

Mount Roskill Mount Roskill is a suburban area in the city of Auckland, New Zealand. It is named for the volcanic peak Puketāpapa (commonly called "Mount Roskill" in English). Description The suburb, named after the Mount, is located seven kilometres to ...

and attended

Mount Roskill Grammar School Mount Roskill Grammar School is a secondary school in the suburb of Mount Roskill, Auckland. Officially opened in 1953, the school is widely regarded as one of the most diverse schools in Auckland, having students of over 70 different national ...

. She received a Bachelor of Arts from the

Canberra College of Advanced Education The University of Canberra (UC) is a public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is within walking distance of Westfield Belconnen, and from Canberra's Civic Centre. UC ...

. Her father died when she was 16 years old.

Broadcasting career

In 1993 Hauiti founded Front of the Box, a television production company specialising in Māori and Pasifika programming. Through this company Hauiti was the executive producer and presenter on Eye to Eye with Willie Jackson that ran from 2004 to 2009. In the

2002 TV Guide NZ Television Awards The 2002 TV Guide NZ Television Awards were staged on Saturday 29 June 2002 in Auckland, New Zealand. Honouring excellence in New Zealand television for the previous year, the awards were sponsored by New Zealand TV Guide magazine, the final yea ...

she won the Best Entertainment Series award for Polyfest 2001. She also produced the documentary ''Children of the Revolution'', which won the ''Best Maori Language Programme'' award at the

2008 Qantas Film and Television Awards The 2008 Qantas Film and Television Awards were held on Saturday 13 September 2008 at the Civic Theatre in Auckland. For the first time, the craft awards were presented separately to the rest of the awards, at an earlier luncheon ceremony at the ...

. ''Children of the Revolution'' is about protest movements New Zealand in the 1970s and 1980s, directed by Makerita Urale. Prior to becoming an MP, she held several high-profile roles, including deputy chair at Auckland's

Museum of Transport and Technology The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) is a science and technology museum located in Western Springs, Auckland, New Zealand. It is located close to the Western Springs Stadium, Auckland Zoo and the Western Springs Park. The museum has l ...

, and strategy roles with Ngāti Te Ata and an

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, ...

radio station. Hauiti is a journalist for Radio Waatea and is the station's Parliamentary Press Gallery reporter. In 2022 Hauiti was a competition judge for the Whānau Mārama: New Zealand International Film Festival.

Political career

During the

2010 Auckland local elections The 2010 Auckland local elections took place from 17 September until 9 October and were conducted by postal vote. The elections were the first since the merger of the seven councils and elected the new Auckland Council, composed of the mayor and 2 ...

, Hauiti stood for the Albert-Eden Local Board in the Owairaka Subdivision. Representing Citizens & Ratepayers, she was not elected. Hauiti stood in the electorate during the 2011 general election representing

National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

, losing to

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

William Sio Aupito Tofae Su'a William Sio (born 1960) is a politician who became a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives on 1 April 2008 for the Labour Party as a list MP. Since the November , he has represented the Māngere electorate. Pers ...

. Following Aaron Gilmore's resignation, Hauiti replaced him as a list MP on 28 May 2013. In March 2014 she returned her parliamentary charge card to Parliamentary Services, after using it to pay for a Christmas trip to Australia. In April 2014 she breached parliament rules by employing her wife as an assistant in her electorate office. She said she was unaware of the rule and immediately terminated the employment after being made aware. Hauiti announced her resignation from politics on 22 July 2014, after having already been selected as the candidate for

Kelston Kelston is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, north west of Bath, and east of Bristol, on the A431 road. It is situated just north of the River Avon, close to the Kelston and Saltford locks. The parish has a population of 248. ...

in the upcoming election. She was replaced by

Chris Penk Christopher Aidan Penk (born 1980) is a New Zealand politician and Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the National Party. Personal life Penk was born in West Auckland. He attended Kelston Boys' High School and graduate ...

. She left Parliament prior to the election date to return to her private business.

Post-parliament

In December 2014 and again in January 2015 Hauiti re-appeared in media when she was found to have spent approximately $23,000 on MP's expenses despite her known decision to stand down. Her second media appearance came when her sister had an employment-related dispute with Raukawa FM, a station formerly run by Hauiti as Strategic Advisor.

Personal life

Hauiti is

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

, of

Ngāti Porou Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Porou is affiliated with the 28th Maori Battalion and has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi in New Zeala ...

Te Whānau-ā-Apanui Te Whānau-ā-Apanui is a Māori iwi (Iwi is the Maori word for tribe) located in the eastern Bay of Plenty and East Coast regions of New Zealand's North Island. In 2006, the iwi registered 11,808 members, representing 13 hapū. History Early ...

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 16 ...

, Ngāti Kuta and

Ngāti Ruanui Ngāti Ruanui is a Māori iwi traditionally based in the Taranaki region of New Zealand. In the 2006 census, 7,035 people claimed affiliation to the iwi. However, most members now live outside the traditional areas of the iwi. History Early his ...

descent. She is a lesbian and entered a civil union with her partner Nadine Mau in 2007. They have three children. She is a Christian.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hauiti, Claudette 1961 births Living people Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand list MPs New Zealand National Party MPs Unsuccessful candidates in the 2011 New Zealand general election New Zealand television presenters LGBT members of the Parliament of New Zealand Lesbian politicians Women members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Ngāti Porou people Te Whānau-ā-Apanui people Ngāpuhi people Ngāti Ruanui people New Zealand Christians LGBT Christians LGBT conservatism People educated at Mount Roskill Grammar School University of Canterbury alumni New Zealand Māori women Politicians from Auckland 21st-century New Zealand politicians 21st-century New Zealand women politicians Māori politicians New Zealand women television presenters 21st-century LGBT people