Tory Whanau considers legal action over ‘false, sexist, personal attacks’
Friday, 11 July 2025
Wellington mayor Tory Whanau is seeking legal advice over an email she’s labelled “malicious and sexist” and a tactic designed to “discourage good people from standing for public office”.
In the email, supplied to by The Post by Whanau, Chung said he had been approached by a neighbour with gossip about the mayor being involved in a “night of debauchery to be remembered” including 'tempestuous sex” and talk of drugs.
Whanau said there was no truth to the claims and, on the night in question, she had been with diplomats, an MP, and about 10 friends.
The email was sent to fellow councillors John Apanowicz, Tony Randle and Nicola Young in early 2023.
“This behaviour is not acceptable and voters deserve to know,” Whanau said. “Politics has changed. In my first campaign, we saw respectful debate and no dirty politics. Now, for some candidates, smear tactics seem to have become the norm.”
It was deeply concerning individuals “spreading these harmful falsehoods” were now standing for election.
Whanau she had sought legal advice and was speaking publicly to take a stand against “false, sexist and personal attacks”.
Philanthropist and developer Sir Mark Dunajtschik, who attended Chung’s campaign launch, said he was disappointed by recent media reports about “dirty politics”.
“I do not support that behaviour nor will I support any candidates who engage in it,” he said.
“I urge all candidates to engage in a clean campaign and address the important and urgent issues facing the city, they should play the ball not the person.”
Chung on Friday confirmed he sent the email but he was merely passing on information he heard from one of his neighbours when he was out taking his dogs for a walk. The neighbour, Chung’s email says, told him that his son and a friend had met “a couple of women” on a night out.
Chung said he would not apologise to Whanau, as she had never apologised to him ‒ including two years ago at a Local Government New Zealand conference when the Wellington City Council proxy vote was given to Hutt City mayor Campbell Barry over him. Whanau said that this happened because her flight was delayed and that she apologised to Chung for any distress.
“You can’t change anything that happened two years ago. It was a different world then,” Chung said.
“I was six weeks into being a councillor [and heard the gossip] so I passed it on to my colleagues.”
Chung is being urged to take a step back by his own supporters ‒ but not down ‒ due to concerns for his mental wellbeing.
Chung on Friday morning confirmed he was being urged to take a step back but was not sure if he was able to with early mornings and functions until late at night.
It meant he was getting up at 4am and going to bed at 11pm.
“This is what you have to do to fit in,” he said. “Of course, I have to do council work at the same time.”
On top of everything, he said he was being hounded by abusive and apparently orchestrated phone calls.
Alistair Boyce from the group Better Wellington, behind Chung’s Independent Together ticket, confirmed members of the group were urging him to take a break from campaigning.
“We have still got three months to go [until voting closes], we are a little bit worried,” Boyce said.
The exhaustion of the race was pushing Chung too hard, Boyce said.
This included being on the receiving end of “abusive” late night calls, he said.
“That is why he sometimes talks waffle.”
Chung’s campaign has had a horror week after earlier allegations of “dirty tactics” revealed by The Post.
On Wednesday The Post reported that an Independent Together-linked group is behind a bizarre attempt at opposition research on Labour-aligned candidates for the local body elections ‒ labelling mask-wearers “Covidians,” slamming candidates’ partners, and painting pro-Māori views as extremist.
Better Wellington has confirmed it commissioned research ahead of the October vote. But Boyce distanced the group from the document, saying the researcher went rogue and strayed beyond the agreed remit.
Chung on Thursday said he had never seen, nor had knowledge of, the dossier.
“I reject any and all of the spurious accusations in The Post that I, or the team of independent candidates with whom I am proud to stand, are behind it.
Boyce also said he hadn’t seen a copy of the report but did confirm that Better Wellington commissioned the research.
“It was sort of open research in regard to political events and local body politics,” Boyce told The Post.
“We commissioned that guy on a very low retainer, and he went out there and provided us information on various things, and then he sort of went mad…”
Asked if Better Wellington would commit to not using any of the information in the report, Boyce said: “Well, probably, yeah.”
At the first mayoral debate of the campaign, Independent Together candidate Lily Brown was accused of misrepresenting a statement by Labour’s mayoral candidate Andrew Little.
At the community forum, Brown asked whether candidates would sign a written pledge to “never consult with [their] party on any decisions” if elected.
However, in a subsequent tweet, and a letter to The Post, Brown softened her question — claiming she had asked whether candidates would “put Wellingtonians ahead of [their] party”. She concluded the tweet with “ANDREW LITTLE SAID NO!”
The social media post was later amplified by Better Wellington and fellow Independent Together candidates.
Little had responded at the event by declining to sign an unspecified document but said he was committed to acting in Wellington’s best interests and working collaboratively across political lines.
“I wasn’t going to play into a political stunt at what was supposed to be a meeting for Wellington’s Jewish community,” Little told The Post this week.
“I was clear that my values are Labour and everyone knows that, but I am running as a mayor for all of Wellington and my approach will be to work with people from all backgrounds to get the best for our city.”