Andy Foster has been elected Mayor of Wellington in a victory over incumbent Justin Lester.
Foster, backed by Sir Peter Jackson, has won by 503 votes, according to preliminary results. He received 26,707 votes, compared to Lester's 26,204 votes.
Foster received a phone call from Wellington City Council CEO Kevin Lavery confirming his victory on Sunday afternoon, according to Stuff.
Foster told RNZ's Insight election special that if he was elected mayor, Sir Peter wouldn't have an influence on what happened in the council.
"We haven't had any policy discussions whatsoever. I think what he and Fran have done is to back me because they believed in me," he said.
"They saw what I was standing for and on the Shelly Bay issue I've been standing against what's currently proposed for four-and-a-half years so long before they said anything at all, so I'm just being consistent with what I've always been saying."
Along with Lester, three existing councillors have lost office: Brian Dawson, Peter Gilberd, and Chris Calvi-Freeman.
The result won't be officially confirmed until mid-next week.
Newshub.
