Abstract:
Analysing the nature of political representation raises questions about the roles of political
representatives: who it is they represent and what they do once in Parliament. However, the
roles of MPs can be affected by several factors: institutions; political rules; identity; and the
norms, values and expectations of the groups they advocate for. This thesis assumes that all
of these factors play an important part in shaping the roles of political representatives and are
particularly significant in understanding minority political representation. This case study of political representation of the Pacific Island migrant community in New Zealand analyses the roles and perceptions of minority MPs through their own words. Despite a wealth of literature on the wider subject of political representation, very little takes into account the perspective of the MPs themselves, and this thesis uses in-depth interview data to place the narrative of Pacific political representation in New Zealand into a wider context of the roles of minority MPs in advanced liberal democracies. Arguments for the
increased political representation of minority groups are often based on the assumption that
achieving a 'politics of presence' is essential for democracies, because minority groups need
people from within the group to speak on their behalf. Thus only people with a shared history
or shared experiences can adequately represent the needs of a minority group. This thesis
shows that Pacific political representation is viewed by the MPs as important, because it
reflects the multicultural nature of New Zealand society, allows for issues that affect Pacific
people to be addressed in a political forum and enables Pacific MPs to bring a more collective approach to New Zealand's Westminster Parliamentary democracy. Political institutions and electoral reform have all affected Pacific representation in New Zealand, demonstrating that these factors should not be overlooked when considering the roles of minority MPs. New Zealand's experience of electoral reform has seen an increase of minority political representation, and the Maori seats in New Zealand's House of
Representatives demonstrate how political representation for indigenous minorities can be
implemented. This thesis is an exploratory work into the political journeys of New Zealand's
Pacific MPs; an area that has previously been overlooked or neglected, but one that is vital to
increase understanding of the roles of minority political representatives.
