Mana and Ideological Integrity

Solidarity or Just a Flash in the Pan?

Abstract

On 20 October 2014, Aotearoa New Zealand voted into office, for a third term, the centre-right National Party led by John Key. Earlier in 2014, politicians from all parties appeared to be meandering towards another uneventful election filled with conservative debate and political rhetoric. However, on 27 May a surprising alliance was announced between Mana and the Internet Party. This paper examines the trajectory of Mana together with its odd alliance with the Internet Party. To date little scholarly attention has been given to analysis of Mana’s emergence and short history in terms of its attempt to reinvigorate leftist politics. Mana’s ideological tendencies and positioning will be explored in what follows to remedy this shortcoming. Rather than focusing on quantitative considerations, such as voting patterns and social-political demographics, this paper draws upon the notion of ‘ideology’ as a way to explore the party politics of the Mana and Internet Party alliance.