Stuart Nash resigned as a New Zealand First candidate on Wednesday night after calling National MP Katie Nimon "lazy" for taking parental leave, a comment condemned across the political spectrum as sexist and misogynistic. RNZ

Te Kira Lawrence, a sitting Napier councillor, has been named as New Zealand First's replacement candidate for the Napier electorate. Lawrence shifts across from her previous selection as the party's East Coast candidate.

Nash's remark targeted Nimon's parental leave after the birth of her son, Lochie. Nimon returned to electorate work when Lochie was ten weeks old and to Parliament after six months, contrary to Nash's claim that she took nine months off.

Nimon has said that Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Speaker Gerry Brownlee, and National's whip Stuart Smith all encouraged her to take whatever time she needed. The comment from Nash drew criticism from MPs well beyond the National Party, with condemnation described as spanning the full political spectrum.

Minister for Women Nicola Grigg, a National MP, said Nash had no choice but to resign. "There is absolutely no place for people like that in our House of Representatives," Grigg said. Her parliamentary office is furnished with a portacot, pram, nappies, and teddies. Grigg delivered leaflets during the 2023 election campaign while heavily pregnant.

The episode has placed the experience of mothers in Parliament under fresh attention. A baby bouncer has been passed among mothers in the House, from Labour MP Camilla Belich to National MP Nicola Grigg to National MP Katie Nimon, an informal chain that crosses party lines.

Belich said being a mum in Parliament was hard work and credited the mothers who went before her in the House for showing it could be done.

For NZ First, the replacement of a candidate in Napier mid-cycle is a logistical matter the party will need to manage. Lawrence, already an elected councillor, brings local government experience to the candidacy but will need to build name recognition in a different electorate from the one she was originally selected for.

The broader context here is that parental leave for MPs has moved from a peripheral issue to a settled expectation within the parliamentary environment, and the cross-party response to Nash's comment reflects that. Luxon, Brownlee, and Smith actively encouraging Nimon to take leave, the presence of infant paraphernalia in a minister's office, and Labour and National MPs sharing a baby bouncer are all practical markers of that shift. Nash's comment landed as an outlier against that backdrop, and the speed of his departure suggests NZ First recognised the political cost of defending it.

The question of how candidate selections are managed when a resignation occurs mid-campaign is one party organisations deal with infrequently. NZ First has moved quickly to install Lawrence, but the switch from East Coast to Napier means the party now has a gap to fill in its original list for that seat, and limited time to do so.