As the May federal election approached, candidates linked to Australia's anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown movements appeared energised and confident of at least a measure of political success.
They had convoyed to Canberra, built Telegram channels of more than 60,000 followers, and had a loosely defined but eye-catching message of "freedom".
In the end, a sweeping electoral victory failed to emerge, but similar groups in New Zealand are now attempting a more local approach.
A prominent anti-vaccine group in New Zealand is encouraging followers to run in the country's upcoming local elections while hiding their affiliation, according to local media reporting.
Like similar groups in Australia, Voices for Freedom came to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, building a robust social media presence focused on opposition to vaccination, masks, and other health restrictions, as well as sharing conspiracy theories linked to the United Nations.
The organisation, which was reportedly involved in February protests outside parliament in Wellington that turned violent, said in an August email that "concerned New Zealanders" should stand as independents in the October 8 local elections.
"Don't put 'Voices for Freedom' or 'VFF' as the affiliation or group represented when filling out the candidate paperwork", an email seen by the ABC instructed.
In recent weeks, the group has published video explainers reinforcing its push into local government, instructing followers on how to set up a candidate Facebook page, perform in interviews and present well on Zoom, down to camera angles and lighting.
"When you have a whole lot of energised and motivated people, we can really sway the results. Throw our weight around," one member said in a recent live stream.
NZ local elections generally have low turnout
Low voter turnout means some candidates are able to win office largely unchallenged.
LGNZ, an association that represents local councils, has been actively encouraging the public to run — pointing to regional council areas where there haven't been enough nominations to fill vacancies.
This general apathy presents an opportunity, according to Sanjana Hattotuwa, a research fellow with The Disinformation Project, which has been tracking these organisations.
"These groups have strategised the path of least resistance to enter democratic institutions, and then work upwards and outwards."
Dozens of reports have now emerged of candidates in Christchurch, Canterbury, Dunedin and other council areas who have alleged links to Voices For Freedom, or who have espoused conspiracy theories.
Some have hidden from reporters when challenged about their affiliations. Another initially denied any links, but later contacted the reporter to say she "couldn't with a clear conscience say I'm not".
There is also concern about candidates who have ties to far-right groups.
In a separate election, one man, who a judge described as holding a "deep-seated enmity towards people of the Muslim and Jewish faiths" and who was jailed for sharing the Christchurch shooting video, is running for a school board in the south island city.
Not all candidates are 'out and proud'
FACT Aotearoa (Fight Against Conspiracy Theories Aotearoa) has encouraged voters to let the group know about any candidates that raised red flags.
Stephen Judd, the group's spokesperson, said they were taking a closer look at around 200 candidates where FACT had found at least some evidence they had shared anti-vaccine views or conspiracy theories.
Of course, it's hardly unusual for people with a broad range of beliefs to run for local government.
"What's different this time around, is this phenomenon of people who are not out and proud and scrubbing their publicly available statements," Mr Judd said.
Low voter turnout makes local council elections a potentially easier target for groups that aim to spread an anti-vaccine message, and candidates are less likely to be scrutinised.
Like in many other countries, coverage of local government in New Zealand has evaporated as local papers collapsed and news outlets centralised in major cities.
"There's this information vacuum which is connected perhaps to falling local government engagement," Mr Judd said.
"Which is creating the conditions where conspiracy-theory-aligned candidates can fly under the radar."
Inspired by US hyper-conservative movement
Benjamin Moffitt, an associate professor of politics at the Australian Catholic University, said the local strategy was notable, especially given how successfully it had been used by hyper-conservative movements in the United States.
This has involved targeting school boards and even local sheriff elections.
"You mobilise well enough, you can probably get in," Dr Moffitt said.
While this route has worked in the US, the power of local government in New Zealand is comparatively limited, Mr Judd suggested.
"The practical implications of groups like this getting elected to local government isn't that they get to implement an agenda, it's that they can gum up the works and it gives them a platform," he said.
Dr Moffitt suggested the poor federal election result for similar groups in Australia was partly a result of timing, as well as the dominance of the two-party system.
By the start of the federal election campaign, lockdowns and mandates rules had largely been lifted, taking the urgency out of their central theme.
"If the election was held even three months earlier, the salience of their message would have been so much more," he said.
He suggested their legacy was to bring together various tangents of "conspiracy-oriented" people — in many ways, the various convoys and protests were networking events — that may coalesce again in future.
As public health restrictions have eased in New Zealand, groups that formed around opposition to these measures, especially vaccines, are attempting a transition to new topics.
According to Mr Judd, one of political significance for local governments is "three waters reform" — referring to measures intended to tackle the chronic underfunding of drinking water, stormwater and sewage infrastructure.
Some groups have attempted to merge this issue in their Telegram channels and online broadcasts with environmentally-linked conspiracy theories such as "Agenda 2030", which claims the UN plans to create a global government.
What does it mean for NZ's general election?
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern seems likely to be facing a bumpy campaign during next year's New Zealand general election.
So will we see the same strategies used by conspiracy groups at the local elections be transferred to the national level?
"What you're seeing today is a dry run for a script or a performance … that will, with greater sophistication, roll out prior to the campaign in 2023," Dr Hattotuwa said.
Mr Judd agreed it was a "good dry run" for the general election next year.
"In the best case, it helps you build your base and collect names that will help when you run next year," he said.
The political fate of Voices for Freedom and others in the local election will be clear in just over one month, but Dr Hattotuwa said the threat this activity poses to New Zealand's democratic health is still under-appreciated.
"This is something this country has never seen, in so far that they don't have to register as a political party, but they are to all intents and purposes a political entity," he said of Voices for Freedom.
"They are clearly aiming to be a platform that shapes public policy."
Voices for Freedom did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.
However, it said in a statement on its website that its instructions to candidates had been "taken out of context".
It said Voices for Freedom was not running a ticket in local body elections, and "candidates receive no formal endorsement".
Australia's 'freedom' movement has faltered. Could it find political success in NZ? - ABC News
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