Hi! Every year I put up some of my favourite articles, but I figure there’s no use dropping a lot of reading about NZ politics a few months after the election is done. Accordingly, here’s all the NZ-based articles I’ve enjoyed reading this year, for anybody who wants to pick a few and get up to speed before Election Day. I’ll continue to update this up until election day, and there’ll still be a favourite articles list at the end of the year. All especially interesting or impressive picks will be bolded.
January
The Spinoff [NZ]: Growing up with Shortland Street
The Spinoff: New Zealand isn’t ready for a Māori prime minister
RNZ [NZ]: Spare Change: The Ardern Years
February
Newsroom [NZ]: Hipkins heads to the Far North to woo at Waitangi
Newsroom [NZ]: Beating up the ‘alt- right’
March
The Conversation [AU]: New Zealand’s childcare is among the most expensive in the world. But tax rebates are not the answer
Stuff: What does a childcare policy tell us about the Leader of the Opposition? - Damien Grant’s still a jerk but he gets it right occasionally
Politik [NZ]: How Nash got tangled up in “dirty politics”
April
Newsroom: An empty school and a policy half full - so, so funny; really puts you in the moment
The Spinoff: Do our schools work for boys?
May
The Spinoff: Was this Breakfast’s freakiest interview yet?
Museum Street [NZ]: Here's your Budget receipt
The Spinoff: A kludgeocratic budget for the ages
June
The Spinoff: Vast majority of New Zealanders believe trans people should be protected from discrimination – poll
Stuff: Love Your Local: What to order at an Indian restaurant (that isn't butter chicken or tikka masala)
The Spinoff: The two poverties & Has Labour worsened inequality? - an excellent two-parter on the core mandate Labour received in 2017
The Spinoff: The fall and rise of David Seymour and the Act Party - one of the most informative articles of this election, a must-read
" " " ": Can Chris Hipkins sell New Zealand in 17 minutes? - another great vignette about the unnatural awkwardness of the political world
" " " ": National and the 45% hazard
Stuff: Normalising the outrageous: On hearing what makes a Māori 'good' - a really earnest and vulnerable reaction to a particularly grim and underappreciated episode this year
July
NZ Herald: Wayne Brown, Leo Molloy, Sir Graham Henry, Guy Williams, Sean Plunket front foul-mouthed charity debate - speechless
The Spinoff: I had a relationship with my teacher. It’s more common than you’d think - on a serious note, if the Uffindell case was the story that I got most personally aggravated about last year, this year it was the Taurapa case; a huge tautoko both to all those who summoned the incredible strength to speak up around the matter, and also those who did not personally feel able to speak up but nevertheless wrestled with the harm done to them
Newsroom: Greens plot path back to power
Stuff: Greens try to spark some Opposition energy with big election year dreams - very telling, especially about James Shaw
The Spinoff: So this is how the story ends
Stuff: Changing the tax system was not an election-winning strategy for Labour - I'm not sold on all the claims here but lots of interesting contentions
Museum Street: Who are the ACT Party base?
August
NZ Herald: What a National-Act Cabinet might look like
The Post [NZ]: ‘Unholy alliance’: How Tamaki, Grey found common ground
The Post: GST off fruit and vege: The idiot cousin of Labour's craven desperation - harsh article, but deservedly so, and emblematic of a news cycle that turned an attempt by Labour to win back votes into a weakness for the party
September
Stuff: Shambles of our visa regime: Immigration staff reveal their truth - if these allegations are true, this is one of the ministries in the most crisis and in urgent need of repair
The Spinoff: Family Faith Footy is a World Cup must-watch
Newsroom: Both main parties misreading business interests - Rob Campbell, out of his public service work, has quickly established himself as a really fresh and thoughtful observer
The Spinoff: Why doesn’t ACC cover all babies injured at birth?
“ “ “ “: How to run for parliament (and win)
The Spinoff: Let the debates begin - a comprehensive resource on election debates
Newsroom: I don’t want Te Pāti Māori choosing my electoral roll - a shockingly poor policy that, while surely doomed never to be implemented, deserves scrutiny
The Spinoff: Andy Foster plots his glorious return
October
Newstalk ZB [NZ]: National has abandoned their plans for social investment from 2017
Politik: Chippy misses a chance
The Press [NZ]: On the list: Christchurch candidates on the cusp of Parliament - great candidates and all but I was mainly just baffled by Laura Trask (ACT's Banks Peninsula candidate, on track for Parliament on current polling) in this one
The Spinoff: Why I’m voting for climate as a disabled person
Stuff: The battle for NZ’s farming heartland: Groundswell, ACT and the changing face of rural politics
Newsroom: Luxon impresses in Taranaki, still doesn’t know Winston - the best I've ever seen of Luxon
Stuff: 'Vote now, and vote early': Restless Pasifika voters gear up for political change - if these anecdotes translate into significant change in voting patterns, this could have a real impact for the coming years
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