In 2017, I had the privilege of being Labour's candidate for Whanganui. We ran the campaign of our lives, and came close but missed out by 1,700 votes. Last term, I was elected to Labour's Policy Council, where I chaired the economic development policy committee. I applied the lessons I've learnt from talking to people in Pātea, Hāwera, Whanganui, and Stratford to develop policies to help our regions grow.