Introduction
David James Clendon (born 11 September 1955) is a New Zealand politician and member of the Green Party. Following the resignation of Sue Bradford, Clendon became a member of the House of Representatives on 2 November 2009.
Personal life
Clendon is of Ngāpuhi, Te Roroa and Pākehā descent. He has a partner, Lindis, and one daughter Kaya.
Political career
Clendon joined the Green Party in 1990. In both the 1999 and 2005 elections, Clendon polled third in the seat of Waitakere, ranked 19th and 12th on the party list, respectively.
Clendon was the co-convenor of the Green Party from 2001 to 2004. He did not contest the 2002 general election because the party's constitution bars co-convenors from standing for parliament.
Along with MPs Russel Norman and Nándor Tánczos, and former MP Mike Ward, Clendon contested the Green's male leadership role in 2005 after the unexpected death of co-leader Rod Donald, saying that it made sense to "appoint an out-of-Parliament leader, rather than stretch the sitting MPs even further." Russel Norman won the leadership after a vote at a party AGM in June 2006.
Member of Parliament
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||||
| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party |
| 2009–2011 | 49th | List | 10 | Green |
| 2011–2014 | 50th | List | 8 | Green |
| 2014–present | 51st | List | 11 | Green |
In the 2008 general election Clendon was ranked tenth on the Green list and stood as a candidate in the Helensville electorate, coming third with 5.96% of the electorate vote. Following the resignation of list MP Sue Bradford, Clendon entered Parliament as he was next on the Green party list. He became a member of parliament on 2 November 2009. On 17 November he gave his maiden speech to Parliament. He contested the Mount Albert electorate in the 2011 election and was re-elected as a list MP ranked eighth, and stood in the Northland electorate in the 2014 election and was re-elected as a list MP ranked eleventh. On 27 January 2017 it was announced that Clendon had been elected unopposed as the Green Party's candidate for Northland for the 2017 election.
Private Member's Bill
In February 2010, Clendon's Smart Meters (Consumer Choice) Bill was drawn from the member's ballot, but in May 2010 it was voted down by the National and ACT parties' majority.
Spokesperson roles
Clendon is the Green Party's spokesperson on the Auckland Supercity, Commerce, Consumer Affairs, Corrections, ICT, Resource Management Act, Small Business, Tertiary Education, Tourism, Maori Affairs and Research Science and Technology.