The MSM have picked up on one part of the Paula Bennett story but have missed out the second part. Paula Bennett has announced that she is going list-only and will not seek re-election after becoming the campaign chair for the 2020 General Election.
The media quite rightly picked up on the first part of the story which was that it is likely that Christopher Luxon could be parachuted into Bennett’s Upper Harbour electorate. Paula Bennett’s going list-only, the media reasoned, would pave the way for Christopher Luxon to be handed her electorate on a silver platter.
Bennett vacating the Upper Harbour seat opens the door for Luxon – and a number of National sources have told Stuff that this could eventuate.
Luxon, who is so wet he’d drown in his own puddle, is of course keeping his cards close to his chest and has still not confirmed that he will be going into politics. Previously it was expected that he was going to be parachuted into the Botany electorate.
However, it is understood that he is now not keen on this option because it could be a campaign with Jami-Lee Ross.
The reason why Bennett’s seat may be the most attractive option is that party rules could allow Luxon to be parachuted in by the National Party board rather then face a bruising selection process.
stuff.co.nz/national/politics/114992644/national-could-be-paving-way-for-christopher-luxon-to-take-paula-bennetts-seat
The second part of the story about Paula Bennett going list-only that the media have missed is this: once Paula Bennett no longer represents an electorate, she can easily be sacrificed during coalition negotiations with NZ First. Winston Peters believes that Bennett was the leaker, and if he makes her removal from the list the price of a coalition deal, National’s leader may be quite happy to pay it.
Bennett probably hasn’t realised yet that by giving up a safe seat for a list place she has made herself expendable. Especially if her campaign is as awful as everything else Paula Bennett does.