Paula Anne Southgate is a New Zealand politician. She has held several positions in local government since 2001. In October 2019 she was elected the

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

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 ...

Early life

Southgate was born in 1963 or 1964 to Margaret Southgate and attended

Hamilton Girls' High School Hamilton Girls' High School is a state single sex secondary school located in central Hamilton, New Zealand. The school caters for students in Years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 18). History Hamilton High School was opened to students on 10 July 1911, ...

and the

University of Waikato The University of Waikato ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato), is a Public university, public research university in Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, New Zealand established in 1964. An additional campus is located in Tauranga. The university perfo ...

. She worked as a teacher, a counsellor in the mental health sector, and served on two school boards of trustees.

Local government

Southgate served as a councillor on the

Waikato Regional Council Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, t ...

from 2001 to 2016. In 2013 she was elected to be the council chair over

Bob Simcock Robert Malcolm Simcock (born 1947) is a New Zealand politician. He was a Member of Parliament for the National Party from 1996 to 2002 and Mayor of Hamilton from 2007 to 2010. Early career Simcock attended St John's College before graduating ...

, with the support of eight out of fourteen councillors. She ran to be mayor of Hamilton and a Hamilton City Councillor in the 2016 local elections but lost to Andrew King. The election was close, with an election-day margin of nine votes reduced to six votes after a

judicial recount An election recount is a repeat tabulation of votes cast in an election that is used to determine the correctness of an initial count. Recounts will often take place if the initial vote tally during an election is extremely close. Election reco ...

. However, she was elected as a city councillor from the East ward. In the 2019 local elections, she did not run for a councillor position but won the mayoralty with 33.74% of the vote and a majority of 3,137 votes over King. Geoff Taylor was appointed as her deputy mayor. Southgate sought and won a second mayoral term in the

2022 local elections This local electoral calendar for 2022 lists the subnational elections held in 2022. Referendums, Recall election, recall and retention elections, and national By-election, by-elections (special elections) are also included. January *9 January: ...

Personal life

Southgate is married to Greg and has two daughters and a stepson.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Southgate, Paula 1960s births Living people Mayors of Hamilton, New Zealand People educated at Hamilton Girls' High School University of Waikato alumni