2011 Youth Candidate Review - Greens

The Greens are not a political party they are an international marketing brand. It would be like I guess Apple standing in election worldwide. I treat them as such. With suspicion that no one is as clean, green or as mean as others think they are. I missed profiling James Shaw, as I was too exhausted after the research on the two ladies. In consolation for him I will acknowledge he is one of the better looking male candidates on the campaign trail.

Ironically these two young Greenies are probably going to all be elected on the list ahead of the three young Union plants from Labour, making the compare and contrast even more interesting to complete.

Holly Walker



Holly has one of the best online presences of all the young candidates and therefore has a far better chance of a favourable review if the material isn't too nutty. Which while I am a little bit sick in my mouth when she starts talking about her rather distorted view of the "evil" of inequality blinded by her own start in life, she is not a complete tree-hugging nutter. She also has an excellent sense of humour for a pinko.



Holly has worked in a disciplined fashion on twitter and Facebook and has disclosed her CV in full on the Green's website. Bless her, she even survived and thrived in an interview with Bryce Edwards, one of the dullest men on You Tube stuttering through yet another interview.

The measure of how nice Holly Walker really is can be found in evidence that she's even been kind to Ducky in Hutt South.

At age 29 Holly has completed a BA in English and Politics and trotted off to Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship. She is also like Stephen Whittington a champion debater. Quite why she achieved the heights of that and accepted a lowly job working for scum list MP's as political and media advisor you would have to ask her. Remembering until recently at her list position of number 12 there wasn't a chance she would be in Parliament at all.

Holly is the perfect Green MP. So politically correct she had a civil union because her gay friends could not legally get married. The nice, smiling, grating academic over-achiever who has all the tools to actually perform something commercially but never will because she thinks it is all absolutely horrifying. After a couple of hours of background completed, I describe her as a non-commercial Theresa Gattung in geek chic. Interestingly Holly wears a greenstone dangly piece from her neck. I was given the same at a friend's wedding for attending. I pulled it apart trying to take the attachment off the cord and ruined it so it sits cordless in my drawer. Holly's seems to have fared better.

Holly's Oxford thesis addressed the 'Closing the Gaps' Maori development policy in New Zealand 1999-2001 and her focus is on inequality and indigenous development. Yawn.

I wanted to watch Backbenches Hutt South before I completed this review but it isn't available overseas for me to view yet. Instead I had to watch Edwards' full interview and block out his gnawing stuttering and tsking. And I watched all the interview to see how long it took me before I was sick of Holly. She has a nice voice, good tone and unlike many young candidates, doesn't speak down to people so I was able to my surprise get through the entire thing. She just needed to put the damn coffee down. What was that about?

The audience took her down on GST (Greens don't want it removed) but the Greens wanted free tertiary fees which is always now treated with suspicion and contempt by everyone who actually has had to pay them. A student with a BA then addressed the elephant in the room that his BA was bloody useless. She didn't answer that well.

Like a good leftie, Holly simply agreed with every suggestion to spend money, give more to "poor" people and that there needed to be more debate. She may be on the Labour CGT "Expert panel" at this rate.

In Simon Wilson's words, I get the feeling this girl would talk the back off the bus before "Kim Kardashian" Ardern and Nikki Kaye even boarded it. She is way cooler than both as she brews her own beer. Like David Seymour building his own car, that makes her stand out as far more useful than the average pollie.

But for all the Oxford study she had to ask what the difference between legalisation and decriminalisation of drugs. A little face palm. Even Nandor knows that.

Should she be an MP? Ideally needs to go get a real job first however her current position says to be she doesn't wish to do anything else but work in politics. She is no worse in that regard than any in Labour and of far better academic stock than Kim Kardashian. As a centre-left MP she ticks all the boxes. From my perspective I wished she would use that brain for something commercially viable. I would vote for her to be on the list of a centre-right political party if she was right wing. In other words she has potential if you could reprogram her bleeding heart brain.

Could she be an MP? Easily. The horrid grating inequality thrashing is dull and boring which means she's the perfect little card carrying pinko. Her rejection of fifth form economics puts her in line to be the Greens Finance Spokeswoman.

Will she be an MP? I think so as the Greens will crack 10%. Thinking positively, if Holly gets in a whole host of Labour MP's will not and given the lack of talent in the young Labour blood "coming" though in 2011 it is just as well really.

You get the feeling though Holly wants to change the world. Someone needs to quickly tell her this will not happen so she avoids disappointment.

Julie Anne Genter



Julie Anne is almost 32 years old and born in Minnesota. She went to UC Berkeley for a BA and published a paper on the (wait for it) "philosophical justification for affirmative action". Her other academics include CIEP Political Theory & Economics, IEP, Paris; Sciences Po Scholar; Master of Planning Practice, University of Auckland (1st class); UofA Masters Scholar.

Reading her CV that is available online, I get the underlying feeling that this is the Green candidate who wants to blow up cars and give New Zealand the largest white elephant of a public transport system it can. I shudder what she would do in Auckland if let loose to have tea with Len Brown.

Julie Anne is also photographed wearing what looks like Maori designed neckwear and has an atrocious habit of (in John Ansell's words) "Maorification" of everything. Calling herself "Ngati Pakeha". but being a white American chick with a thick accent, this comes off as well try-hard.

Julie Anne has just a few years in the workforce but like Holly has ended up an advisor to the Green Party. It looks as though they rely on her for advice regarding Transport, Energy and Climate Change and the RMA.

She does however fit the stereotype for a Greenie as a certified yoga teacher with an interest in different styles of dance (West African, modern) who is in to painting, drawing, and gardening.

Should she be an MP? An American Greenie dictator of the New Zealand public transport system? I think not.

Could she be an MP? Bit of a one-trick pony in a farm facing the ETS really. It is bad enough having an Australian as the co-Leader, and now the Greens are foisting a Yank on the House of Representatives?

Will she be an MP? I hope so for no other reason than at number 13 on the Greens list it would mean Labour would have had an atrocious night and there will be blood on the floor.

Tomorrow (or Friday depending on my flying time and availability) - the minor rabble - NZ First, Mana and Maori.