Dave Bainbridge-Zafar, who lives in Port Chalmers, north of Dunedin, while working as a senior infrastructure leader for the council, last week announced he would stand for the Opportunity party in the Dunedin electorate.
Mr Bainbridge-Zafar said running for office was not in his plans for the year, but found himself resonating with Opportunity after hearing their leader Qiulae Wong speak in Dunedin.
"I was really impressed. I think [she] is a very, very impressive person and really relatable. We got to speaking at the party afterwards, I was wondering who they were running in Dunedin.
"They found out about my background, and asked if I’d be interested and I told them if they couldn’t find anyone else [qualified] I’ll do it."
Mr Bainbridge-Zafar was chosen after a selection process deemed him to be the right candidate and while he was not initially that enthusiastic about running, he felt it was his civic duty.
Mr Bainbridge-Zafar said he had squared the campaign away with his employer and all parties were happy with the arrangement.
"I spoke to my employer, our HR team, they’re quite happy with it and there are no conflicts. My job is neutral political advice. I may say some less neutral stuff on Facebook, or when I’m campaigning.
"But that’s my weekends and evenings. That’s my hobby. It will be separate from what I do in the council chambers," he said.
