Richard Lewis (born 1969) is the former leader of two conservative Christianpolitical parties in New Zealand,
Destiny New Zealand
Destiny New Zealand was a Christian political party in New Zealand centred on the charismatic/pentecostal Destiny Church. The party described itself as "centre-right". It placed a strong focus on socially conservative values and argued that the ...
and
The Family Party
The Family Party was a political party in New Zealand. It described itself as a Christian party. He led both these parties from their formation to deregistration.
Lewis was born 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 ...
, New Zealand. At the age of twenty-two, he joined the New Zealand Police. He served as a police officer for eleven years. In 2001, he became the manager of Destiny Social Services, a branch of the Auckland-based Destiny Church. In 2003 Lewis was instrumental in the establishment of the
Destiny New Zealand
Destiny New Zealand was a Christian political party in New Zealand centred on the charismatic/pentecostal Destiny Church. The party described itself as "centre-right". It placed a strong focus on socially conservative values and argued that the ...
political party, which derived primarily from Destiny Church which is headed by
Brian Tamaki
Brian Raymond Tamaki (born 2 February 1958), is a New Zealand fundamentalist Christian religious leader and far-right political activist. A Tainui man from the Ngati Ngawaero and Ngati Maniapoto tribes, he is the leader of Destiny Church, a ...
.
The party went on to stand 42 candidates in the 2005 general election, and was one of only three parties to stand in all 7
Māori electorates
In New Zealand politics, Māori electorates, colloquially known as the Māori seats, are a special category of electorate that give reserved positions to representatives of Māori in the New Zealand Parliament. Every area in New Zealand is ...
. The party did not win any electorate seats and received 0.62% of the party vote, which did not meet the 5% threshold to achieve parliamentary representation. It was the highest polling party outside of parliament. Lewis himself stood as his party's candidate for
Manukau East
Manukau East was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that returned one member of parliament to the House of Representatives. It was first formed for the . Between the and the 2020 electorate adjustment it was held by Jenny Salesa, a member ...
and came third behind the two major party candidates from
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 ...
and
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 ...
with 1,111 votes (3.4%).
In 2007, Destiny New Zealand was disbanded, with Lewis instead becoming leader of the newly formed
The Family Party
The Family Party was a political party in New Zealand. It described itself as a Christian party.The Family Party
The Family Party was a political party in New Zealand. It described itself as a Christian party.2008 election. Lewis, who stood as the candidate for
Manurewa
Manurewa is a major suburb in South Auckland, New Zealand. It was part of Manukau City before the creation of the Auckland super city in 2010. It is located south of the Manukau City Centre, and southeast of Auckland CBD. The suburb is b ...
, gained only 514 votes. The party deregistered in April 2010.