Tama William Potaka (born 1976) is a New Zealand politician and

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 ...

in 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 ...

representing the Hamilton West electorate. He is a member of the National Party and was chief executive of

Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki is a Māori tribe that is based in the area around Clevedon, part of the Auckland region (''Tāmaki'' in the Māori language). It is one of the twelve members of the Hauraki Collective of tribes. The founding ancestors o ...

before entering Parliament.

Early life and family

Potaka was born in

Raetihi Raetihi, a small town in the center of New Zealand's North Island, is located at the junction of State Highways 4 and 49 in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. It lies in a valley between Tongariro and Whanganui National Parks, 11 kilometres west ...

in 1976. He has

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 Co ...

ancestry through both of his parents, who were schoolteachers, and he affiliates to Ngāti Hauiti,

Whanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whang ...

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth D ...

, and

Ngāti Toa Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a Māori '' iwi'' (tribe) based in the southern North Island and in the northern South Island of New Zealand. Its '' rohe'' (tribal area) extends from Whanganui in the north, Palmerston ...

. He was educated at Huntley School and

Te Aute College Te Aute College (Māori: Te Kura o Te Aute) is a school in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand. It opened in 1854 with twelve pupils under Samuel Williams, an Anglican missionary, and nephew and son-in-law of Bishop William Williams. It has a ...

, where he was classmates with Julian Wilcox, Aidan Warren,

Billy Weepu Billy Weepu is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer who played for the Manly Sea Eagles in the NRL, and is now a news camera operator. He is the brother of rugby union player Piri Weepu. Playing career Early years Weepu started hi ...

Karl Te Nana Karl Solomon Te Nana (born 15 July 1975) is a New Zealand former rugby union and rugby league footballer, and currently works in broadcasting as a rugby commentator. A professional rugby union player, Te Nana won a gold medal as part of the Ne ...

and Alistair Toto and became dux in 1993. He received

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

and

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

degrees from

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well kn ...

in 1999, and with a scholarship earned a Master of Laws from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. He passed the

bar exam A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associat ...

and became an attorney at

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is an international white shoe law firm headquartered in New York City. The firm specializes in litigation and corporate practices, particularly mergers and acquisitions, with over 1,000 attorneys in 11 offices wo ...

. Potaka married Ariana Paul in 2008, and they have three children. Potaka worked for Rudd, Watts and Stone (now

Minter Ellison MinterEllison is a multinational law firm, and professional services firm, based in Australia. The firm has fifteen offices and operates in five countries. By number of lawyers it is the largest law firm in Australia. History MinterEllison is ...

), various public policy roles, with Lake Taupō Funds, and

Bell Gully Bell Gully is a major New Zealand law firm. Founded in 1840 it is one of New Zealand's largest law firms, and along with Chapman Tripp and Russell McVeagh it is considered to be one of the "big three". Bell Gully is a full-service law firm. ...

. Potaka then spent seven years based in

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 Hamilto ...

, working as general manager corporate services for Tainui Group Holdings. He subsequently moved back to

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 I ...

where he was a senior advisor at the New Zealand Superannuation Fund. He was appointed chief executive officer of Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki Trust in 2020. In 2021, he was chosen as one of four lead negotiators for the Mōkai Pātea Treaty of Waitangi claim.

Political career

On 6 November 2022, Potaka was selected as the National Party candidate for the

2022 Hamilton West by-election The 2022 Hamilton West by-election was a by-election in New Zealand's electorate. The seat became vacant due to the resignation of former Labour Party MP Gaurav Sharma on 18 October 2022 after expulsion from the party caucus. The by-election ...

caused by the resignation of independent MP Gaurav Sharma who had been expelled from the Labour Party. On 10 December 2022, Potaka won the election, beating Labour candidate Georgie Dansey. Potaka gained 6974 votes compared to Dansey's 4541, a margin of 2433. On 19 January 2023, Potaka was named as National's spokesperson for Māori development and associate spokesperson for housing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Potaka, Tama 1976 births Living people People from Raetihi New Zealand National Party MPs New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 21st-century New Zealand politicians Ngāti Hauiti people Māori MPs People educated at Huntley School, New Zealand People educated at Te Aute College Victoria University of Wellington alumni Columbia University alumni Simpson Thacher & Bartlett people Ngāti Toa people Taranaki (iwi)