Former deputy mayor, Tina Salisbury, is running for the role of mayor in the upcoming Tauranga election. Salisbury was part of the council that was replaced by a four-person commission led by Anne Tolley in February 2021 due to internal conflicts and governance issues. The commission’s term is ending, and elections for a new mayor and nine councillors will take place on July 20.
Salisbury has stated that she was not involved in the previous council’s politics and believes the city needs to move forward. She is committed to working hard and is asking for the opportunity to complete the work she was elected to do. Salisbury will only be running for mayor, not as a councillor in her home ward of Welcome Bay, as she believes the city needs decisive leadership.
Salisbury was a first-time councillor when elected in 2019 and became deputy mayor in June 2020 after the previous deputy, Larry Baldock, resigned. She believes her leadership style is different from past leaders and aims to bring a culture change to the way politics is done and how councils are run.
If elected, Salisbury’s key priorities are to address the housing shortage, build a connected city through transport and infrastructure, value community, and foster collaboration. She has been a business owner, a church pastor, and became a justice of the peace in 2021. She has also worked with the homeless and advocated for young people in her community. Nominations for mayor and councillors in the Tauranga City Council election are open now and will close on May 24.
