Diversity, debt and the future: Leaupepe Rachel Karalus on her bid for Hamilton mayor

Pacific community leader Leaupepe Rachel Karalus has announced her candidacy for Hamilton mayor, with her campaign to centre on diverse voices and long-term planning.

Leaupepe is running for one of two Hamilton East council seats. She has lived in the area since childhood and previously led the K’aute Pasifika Trust for eight years, taking the reins after her mother and trust founder, Elisapeta (Peta) Karalus. The charitable organisation provides healthcare, education, employment, and social services to Pasifika and other ethnic communities in Hamilton.

Since stepping down in January, Leaupepe has spent her time with family and completed a directorship qualification. Speaking with Khalia Strong on Pacific Mornings, the mayoral hopeful says centring diverse voices is deeply meaningful to her.

“In Hamilton, diversity isn't a challenge, it’s a strength to be built on. As someone of Pacific and European heritage, I don't just advocate for diversity or inclusion, I embody it, and my leadership is informed by both,” Leaupepe says.

“My view is that I would be moving beyond consultation and intending to co-design with diverse groups, just as I intend to do with the business community and the unlocking growth phase of the first priority for the city. Inclusion for me is not an outcome, it's a daily practice.”

Public safety and affordability are also priorities for Leaupepe. She says addressing crime requires a coordinated response so that people feel safe in the city. She adds that rising rates and the cost of living are major concerns for many locals.

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Now aged 47, Leaupepe aims to offer “leadership beyond politics”, focussing on restoring financial stability and preparing the city for the future. She says this approach includes thinking beyond the ballot box in planning for future generations.

“This comes back to the three priorities that I've laid out: strengthening the foundation and unlocking growth, advancing through technology and innovation, and finally, planning for generations that we may never meet. It's about longer term planning, planning for our environment and our resources. It's about our children and our children's children.”

To strengthen the foundation, Leaupepe explains the need to get the council back to basics by improving its credit rating, reducing debt, and ensuring that rates are spent wisely. She champions technology and innovation as a catalyst for growth in the council’s projects, processes, and systems.

Watch Leaupepe Rachel Karalus’ full interview below.

“Also that council is a catalyst for growth in this space. My vision for Hamilton is that we become New Zealand's capital of agri-tech and broader innovation. We have lots of players in the agri-tech and broader innovation space and it's quite an exciting time for Hamilton in that area.”

Leaupepe is up against three declared contenders in the 2025 Hamilton mayoralty: Tim Macindoe, a councillor for the East Ward and former National Party MP, Sarah Thomson, West Ward councillor and chair of the Strategic Growth and District Plan Committee, and Maria Huata, the Kirikiriroa Māori Ward councillor elected in a 2024 by‑election. With two-term Mayor Paula Southgate stepping aside, voters will decide between the four candidates on who will lead the city.

Leaupepe says her upbringing, faith, and family have instilled in her the values of service, compassion, and humility. She recalls a known Sāmoan proverb her mother would say, O le ala i le pule o le tautua - the pathway to leadership is through service.

“It comes back to head for detail, heart for Hamilton, those things that I've already referenced. When it came to education and hard work, it was always directed to serving others or making things better for others… I believe mum embodies that, and we've all grown up with that as a part of our identity.”

Candidate nominations close at midday on Friday, 1 August 2025. Voting documents are posted starting 9 September 2025, while voting closes Saturday, 11 October 2025, at noon.