Can National win Pacific votes without Pacific MPs? Agnes Loheni makes Waitākere bid

The National Party wants Pacific votes back but it currently has no Pacific MPs in Parliament.

That tension sits at the centre of former National MP Agnes Loheni’s return to frontline politics as she prepares to contest the newly reformed Waitākere electorate.

Speaking with William Terite on Pacific Mornings, the Sāmoan businesswoman confirmed she is aiming for a comeback after missing out in 2023.

“I’ve come to a stage in my life where my children are now adults and young adults, when I first campaigned, my youngest was nine,” Loheni says.

Her return comes when National is trying to rebuild support among Pacific communities while facing criticism over who represents them.

Loheni believes attitudes are already changing. “There’s definitely a shift and I see that our Pacific community voters are actually looking more broadly,” she said.

Watch Agnes Loheni's full interview below.

“We don’t all think the same and we have definitely seen an increase in the Pacific vote to National or to other parties in recent elections.

“So I just think that it’s great that we can give our community an option.”

But that claim is being challenged.

Labour MP Jenny Salesa questioned how seriously National values Pacific voters, pointing to the absence of Pasifika in government.

“If they valued our Pacific people and the Pacific people's votes, they would ensure that there is one of their members in government or listed high enough to get in on the list if they don't win an electorate,” Salesa told Terite.

The issue of representation, not just policy, is likely to shape the contest ahead.

Watch Jenny Salesa's full interview below.

Loheni says she wants to be part of changing that and hopes more Pacific candidates from National will enter Parliament after the next election.

She also signalled she would take on the Pacific Peoples portfolio if asked but made clear her priority is local.

“I’m here to win Waitākere. It’s a community that I live in, that I’ve lived in for most of my life… and I believe that the National Party has a lot to offer the West.”

Waitākere, once held by former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett, is being brought back following the latest boundary review. Its return opens up a fresh political battleground in West Auckland, an area with a strong and growing Pacific population.

Waitakere will be a future parliamentary electorate in the 2026 New Zealand general election returning one Member of Parliament to the NZ House of Representatives. Photo/Electoral Commission

That makes it a key test, not just of Loheni’s political comeback but of whether National can rebuild trust with Pacific voters.

For many, the question is simple. Are Pacific communities really shifting politically or are parties still trying to win support without reflecting those communities in power?

Loheni’s campaign will be one of the clearest signs yet of which way that answer is heading.