Crux adds new team members for local elections

Crux is ramping up our resources for the 2025 local body elections with two new senior journalists joining our team.

Zizi Sparks (main image – left) has over seven years’ experience as a journalist and news editor, having been a News Director of the Rotorua Daily Post before taking some time out to start a young family. She’s based in Matamata and will be working remotely with Crux during the election campaign.

Amanda Robertshawe (main image – right) is an award-winning journalist and documentary maker who now lives in Arrowtown. Amanda has already written two successful feature articles for Crux on Ladies Mile development and the ORC’s very gradual approach to tackling local air quality challenges.

Together with Managing Editor Peter Newport, Zizi and Amanda will be speaking to candidates in Queenstown, Wānaka and Cromwell as well as getting to the heart of key local issues.

Crux is also offering affordable and effective digital advertising opportunities to all candidates. Now’s the time to prepare – get a website or Facebook page organised first, good ads need something to click through to! Contact [email protected] for details and rates.

To be blunt – we think the old roadside wooden campaign billboards, and printed flyers into letterboxes, have had their day. So please embrace digital and get in touch.

Our main video debate with the key QLDC mayoral candidates will be recorded at The Rees Hotel between 5.30 and 7.30 pm on Tuesday September 9 in front of an invited audience – keep an eye out for how you can attend and take part. Details coming soon.

The video debate will be published in full, with no paywall on Friday September 12 – with a shorter highlights edit for those who want just the key moments.

We are also looking at a similar event where we can talk with the three CODC mayoral candidates as well.

In addition, we’ll be running regular Crux online polls that have in the past shown a strong track record in accurately reflecting community sentiment and voting intentions.

We think it’s going to be a very interesting and above all very important campaign.

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