Henare Kaihau

Who was Henare Kaihau?

Henare Kaihau was a New Zealand Māori politician, serving as Member of the House of Representatives for the Western Maori electorate.

His birth year is uncertain. The Dictionary of New Zealand Biography gives a range from 1854 to 1860, whereas Wilson gives 1855.

He unsuccessfully contested the Western Maori electorate in the 1884 election. Of eight candidates, he came fifth with 9.7% of the vote. In the 1886 by-election, he came third out of five candidates. In the 1896 election, he defeated Ropata Te Ao, and he held the Western Maori electorate to 1911 when he was defeated by Maui Pomare.

Wilson notes him as a Reform Party supporter. Kaihau does, however, appear on a poster of the Liberal Party in 1910. The New Zealand Herald, in its 1905 election reporting, also lists him as a government supporter, i.e. a Liberal. Those newspapers that listed political affiliation for Maori candidates for the 1908 election, The Star and The Tuapeka Times, also show him as a supporter of the Ward Ministry.