Real median pay during each mayor's tenure
8 mayors, ranked by how real median pay changed from their first day in office, next to New Zealand over the same months. Politare shows what happened during a tenure; it does not claim the office-holder caused it.
| # | Mayor | City | In office | Total | vs NZ | Per year | Chart |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N Sheryl Mai | Whangārei | 12 Oct 2013 – 8 Oct 2022 | +15.2% Q3 2013 → Q3 2022 | −0.0 pts NZ +15.2% | +1.6%/yr | |
| 2 | N Stuart Crosby | Tauranga | 9 Oct 2004 – 8 Oct 2016 | +14.5% Q3 2004 → Q3 2016 | +1.7 pts NZ +12.8% | +1.1%/yr | |
| 3 | N Dave Cull | Dunedin | 27 Oct 2010 – 12 Oct 2019 | +13.8% Q3 2010 → Q3 2019 | +0.7 pts NZ +13.1% | +1.4%/yr | |
| 4 | N Lianne Dalziel | Christchurch | 24 Oct 2013 – 8 Oct 2022 | +13.1% Q3 2013 → Q3 2022 | −2.1 pts NZ +15.2% | +1.4%/yr | |
| 5 | N Kerry Prendergast | Wellington | 27 Oct 2001 – 27 Oct 2010 | +10.8% Q3 2001 → Q3 2010 | +2.0 pts NZ +8.7% | +1.1%/yr | |
| 6 | N Ray Wallace | Lower Hutt | 9 Oct 2010 – 12 Oct 2019 | +9.6% Q3 2010 → Q3 2019 | −3.5 pts NZ +13.1% | +1.0%/yr | |
| 7 | N Phil Goff | Auckland | 15 Oct 2016 – 16 Oct 2022 | +8.9% Q3 2016 → Q3 2022 | −0.2 pts NZ +9.1% | +1.4%/yr | |
| 8 | N Celia Wade-Brown | Wellington | 27 Oct 2010 – 10 Oct 2016 | +7.4% Q3 2010 → Q3 2016 | −0.6 pts NZ +8.0% | +1.2%/yr | |
| 9 | N Greg Brownless | Tauranga | 8 Oct 2016 – 12 Oct 2019 | +7.2% Q3 2016 → Q3 2019 | +2.4 pts NZ +4.8% | +2.3%/yr | |
| 10 | N Julie Hardaker | Hamilton | 1 Nov 2010 – 8 Oct 2016 | +6.8% Q3 2010 → Q3 2016 | −1.1 pts NZ +8.0% | +1.1%/yr |
Showing 10 of 38 tenures.
Sorted by total, highest first. Every row is indexed to the last quarter complete before the first day in office ("from" marks a start that had to move because that period had no data, or because the period cut it); New Zealand is measured over the same months. Levels are per cent changes, rates are differences in %; "per year" compounds levels and divides rates. Tenures with under 12 months, or under three observations, are left out. NZ$ per quarter, in today's money, last four quarters · Stats NZ Linked Employer-Employee Data (LEED_Q1W_007, Aotearoa Data Explorer), from tax records, not seasonally adjusted, averaged over the last four quarters: median earnings of a job held the whole quarter in the council's area, adjusted for inflation with the CPI · city (council area) data · as of Jul 2025.