Sophie Barker
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Sophie Barker’s Elections & Candidacies
Note: This database contains data from the 2023, 2020, 2017 and 2014 general elections, the 2025 local government election and is gradually being backfilled with other election data.
Contested 4 races — 2 elected 1 not elected 1 withdrawn
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Council - At LargeDunedin City CouncilAffiliation: Independent - working for youFinal WithdrawnVote share • 0.0%0 votes
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MayorDunedin City CouncilAffiliation: Independent - working for youFinal ElectedVote share • 29.1%16,874 votes
Offices held
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MayorDunedin City CouncilAffiliation: Independent - working for youOct 2025 – present
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Council - At LargeDunedin City CouncilAffiliation: IndependentOct 2019 – Oct 2025
In the News
Ong’s bid to chair new funding committee ‘a stretch’: mayor
Otago Daily Times — December 16, 2025Benedict Ong. Sophie Barker. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED A third Dunedin city councillor is seeking a shake-up to the city’s governance, this time asking to chair a new committee to oversee council funding sources.
Sophie Barker haunted Dunedin’s Larnach Castle – now she’s running the city
The Spinoff — December 12, 2025Just the second female mayor in the city’s history, Sophie Barker wants to make Dunedin the best little city in the land. As a child growing up in Larnach Castle, Sophie Barker loved being a ghost. Whenever busloads of visitors came to tour the historic home high on the hill above Otago Peninsula, the young Barker would hide under a bed in one of the castle’s 25 rooms and wait for the guests to wander in. Then, as the unwitting tourists lingered nearby, possibly contemplating all the stories about Larnach Castle being haunted , Barker would thrust her cold hands out from beneath the bedcovers to grab the nearest pair of ankles, sending the visitors screaming from the room.
Mayor to head CEO committee
Otago Daily Times — December 8, 2025Mayor Sophie Barker. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH Dunedin Mayor Sophie Barker appears set to chair the committee that monitors the performance of the city council’s chief executive.
Unique on-air voices celebrated at awards
Otago Daily Times — November 27, 2025Zohaib Amjad accepts the Best Multilingual Programme award from Mayor Sophie Barker on behalf of the Pakistan Association of Otago at OAR FM's Air Awards. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Burns Hall at First Church was as abuzz on Saturday night as Dunedin Access Media station OAR FM celebrated its Air Awards.
DCC takes hybrid route on governance
Otago Daily Times — November 24, 2025PHOTO: NICOLA WILHELMSEN/KELK PHOTOGRAPHY Portfolios have been assigned at the start of the 2025-28 term for the Dunedin City Council. Elected members are (from left) Crs Benedict Ong (technology deputy lead), Mickey Treadwell (environment and youth deputy), Andrew Simms (economic development co-lead), Brent Weatherall (heritage lead), Mandy Mayhem (culture and arts deputy), Jules Radich (infrastructure lead), Dunedin Mayor Sophie Barker (economic development co-lead), Cr Lee Vandervis, deputy mayor Cherry Lucas, Crs Doug Hall (technology lead), Christine Garey (culture and arts lead), Marie Laufiso (hauora health and wellbeing lead), Steve Walker (environment and youth lead), Russell Lund (heritage deputy) and John Chambers (hauora health and wellbeing deputy). A different style of council governance has been catching on in the South. It is touted as being more efficient but has also been called problematic. Grant Miller reports.
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This database currently contains data from the 2025 local government eleciton, and general elections in 2023, 2020, 2017 and 2014. It is being backfilled with older data. Please get in touch if you want to help.