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Georgie Dansey will be Labour’s candidate to contest the Hamilton West byelection, facing off against former Labour MP Dr Gaurav Sharma.

Labour President Claire Szabó this morning announced Dansey as the party’s candidate for the byelection on December 10, which was forced by the resignation of Sharma two weeks ago after he had been expelled as a member of the party.

Dansey, of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, ran on the party list for Labour in 2020. She is the chief executive of the Independent Schools Education Association and owns Body Fit Training in Te Awamutu.

“Georgie Dansey is a strong candidate for Hamilton West who brings experience and offers continuity,” Szabó said.

“Georgie’s years of experience representing education workers and running her own business makes her ideally suited to advocate for Hamiltonians inside Government and ensure workers and business voices are represented.  

“She brings a great perspective and represents Labour’s values of fairness and opportunity in this by-election.”

Dansey referenced the impact caused by Sharma in her statement on her priorities for the Hamilton community.

“No one has benefited from the recent drama with the outgoing MP,” she said.

“It’s time to move on and get back to focusing on the real issues Hamiltonians face ... I look forward to talking with people across Hamilton West about how we can build on the Government’s strong local achievements so far, and make our community even stronger into the future.”

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