Labour chooses Ibrahim Omer as candidate to replace Grant Robertson for Wellington Central

The Labour Party has selected Ibrahim Omer as its candidate for the Wellington Central electorate in the upcoming general election.

Omer has beaten former party president Claire Szabo to become the party’s candidate for the seat formerly held by Grant Robertson, who has been the electorate’s MP for 15 years.

“I’m honoured to have been chosen as Labour’s candidate for Wellington Central. I love Wellington and I’ll be a strong advocate for this city and its people. This is a city that has given me so many opportunities and I will be a champion for all the different communities that make Wellington what it is,” Omer said.

Omer entered Parliament in 2020 as a list MP. He arrived in New Zealand as a refugee, and moved to Wellington where he worked as a cleaner and dreamt of studying at University.

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That dream came true in 2014 when he enrolled at Victoria University. While studying, he worked nights, cleaning the lecture theatres he would study in during the day.

“As someone who has worked long hours for low pay, I want to ensure that everyone who works hard in our communities can get ahead and improve their lives. Throughout my life I have seen the power of communities coming together to make change. That is the approach I will bring to advocating for Wellington Central,” he said.

“I want to acknowledge my friend and mentor Grant Robertson. Grant has been a tireless advocate for the people of his electorate. I want to follow in his example by promoting our city, celebrating everything that makes us wonderful and unique, and working hard to make the improvements we need,” Omer said.

Robertson had a massive victory over National’s Nicola Willis for the seat in the 2020 election, with Robertson gaining 27,366 votes over Willis’s 8,488.

National has not yet selected a candidate.

The Green Party last month selected city councillor Tamatha Paul as its candidate for the Wellington Central electorate, after James Shaw announced he would step back from the electorate race.