David James Clendon (born 11 September 1955) is a New Zealand politician and former member of the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

. Following the resignation of

Sue Bradford Sue Bradford (born 1 July 1952 in Auckland) is a New Zealand activist, academic, and former New Zealand politician who served as a list Member of Parliament representing the Green Party from 1999 to 2009. Bradford is an eco-socialist. In 2019, s ...

, Clendon became a 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 ...

on 2 November 2009.

Personal life

Clendon is of

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 ...

Te Roroa Te Roroa is a Māori iwi from the region between the Kaipara Harbour and the Hokianga Harbour in Northland, New Zealand. They are part of the Ngāti Whātua confederation of tribes. In the early 19th century Te Roroa fought a series of wars wi ...

and

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non- Māori New Z ...

descent. He is a descendant of

James Reddy Clendon James Reddy Clendon (1 October 1800 – 26 October 1872) was an early European settler in New Zealand, the first United States Consul to New Zealand, and he was a witness to the Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand (1835) and the Treaty ...

, the United States Consul in New Zealand. He has a partner, Lindis, and one daughter Kaya.

Political career

Clendon joined the

in 1990. In both the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

and 2005 elections, Clendon polled third in the seat of Waitakere, ranked 19th and 12th on the party list, respectively. Clendon was the co-convenor of the Green Party from 2001 to 2004. He did not contest the 2002 general election because the party's constitution bars co-convenors from standing for

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

. Along with MP Nándor Tánczos, former MP Mike Ward and 2005 election campaign manager

Russel Norman Russel William Norman (born 2 June 1967) is a New Zealand politician and environmentalist. He was a Member of Parliament and co-leader of the Green Party. Norman resigned as an MP in October 2015 to work as Executive Director of Greenpeace Aote ...

, Clendon contested the Green's male leadership role in 2005 after the unexpected death of co-leader

Rod Donald Rodney David Donald (10 October 1957 – 6 November 2005) was a New Zealand politician who co-led the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand, along with Jeanette Fitzsimons. He lived in Christchurch with his partner Nicola Shirlaw, and their thre ...

, saying that it made sense to "appoint an out-of-Parliament leader, rather than stretch the sitting MPs even further." Norman won the leadership after a vote at a party AGM in June 2006. Clendon was elected as a Councillor for the

Far North District The Far North District is the northernmost territorial authority district of New Zealand, consisting of the northern part of the Northland Peninsula in the North Island. It stretches from North Cape and Cape Reinga / Te Rerenga Wairua in th ...

in 2019.

Member of Parliament

In the 2008 general election Clendon was ranked tenth on the Green list and stood as a candidate in the Helensville electorate, coming third with 5.96% of the electorate vote. Following the resignation of list MP

, Clendon entered Parliament as he was next on the Green party list. He became a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

on 2 November 2009 and delivered his

maiden speech A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament. Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country. In many Westminster system governments, there is a convention th ...

to Parliament on 17 November. A private member's bill in Clendon's name was drawn from the ballot in February 2010. The Smart Meters (Consumer Choice) Bill would require that domestic power users be advised on the options available for the use of smart meters in their homes. It was voted down by the Government later that year. In the , Clendon unsuccessfully contested the electorate but was re-elected as a list MP ranked eighth. In the , he stood in the electorate and was re-elected as a list MP ranked eleventh. He did not contest the 2015 Northland by-election, but was planning to stand in the seat again in the . On 7 August 2017, Clendon and fellow Green Party MP Kennedy Graham announced that they were planning to resign as Green Party candidates for the 2017 election, after revelations that Party co-leader

Metiria Turei Metiria Leanne Agnes Stanton Turei (born 1970) is a New Zealand academic and a former New Zealand politician. She was a Member of Parliament from 2002 to 2017 and the female co-leader of the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand from 2009 to 2017 ...

committed benefit and electoral fraud. Graham and Clendon stated that their resignations were due to the public positions she had taken regarding her offending, and her subsequent refusal to step down from her leadership role. The next day, both Clendon and Graham resigned from the Party caucus, after there were moves to remove them involuntarily. On 9 August 2017, Turei resigned as co-leader of the Party and as a list candidate for the 2017 election.

Spokesperson roles

Clendon was the Green Party's spokesperson on the Auckland Supercity, Commerce, Consumer Affairs, Corrections, ICT,

Resource Management Act The Resource Management Act (RMA) passed in 1991 in New Zealand is a significant, and at times, controversial Act of Parliament. The RMA promotes the sustainable management of natural and physical resources such as land, air and water. New Zea ...

, Small Business, Tertiary Education, Tourism, Māori Affairs and Research Science and Technology.

Notes

References

External links

Profile at Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand website
(archived 14 June 2017)
Parliamentary website profile
(showing his role as "musterer", formerly "deputy musterer") {{DEFAULTSORT:Clendon, David 1955 births Living people Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand MPs New Zealand left-wing activists New Zealand list MPs Unsuccessful candidates in the 1999 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 2005 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 2008 New Zealand general election Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 21st-century New Zealand politicians Candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election