Roger Stratford is the only Hamilton mayoral candidate prepared to stand up to central government. If elected, Roger will hold a binding referendum on membership of LGNZ.

Hello, I'm Roger Stratford. I am the Secretary of the Hamilton Residents & Ratepayers Association Incorporated. Please don't confuse me with fellow aspirant Tim Macindoe, as we look alike in some photos, especially in profile. Tim and I are not as different in politics as you might come to believe. We are both strong supporters of Family First NZ, for instance. We both favour referenda on important issues.

Whilst I (and Tim himself, I would suggest), consider ourselves natural rivals for Hamilton's elected office, the media have dubbed "Senior" Councillor Sarah Thomson as his chief opponent. But this comparison is problematic, due to the vastly different demographics of the two. It's difficult to compare oranges with apples and come up with a meaningful result. The two media favourites come from completely different generations and in the way they source their support network.

In the Hamilton mayoral race, there are three "R" candidates - Rudi, Roma and Roger - that are ignored by business. We are struggling for recognition among frequently bombastic fellow candidates. No popularity polls have been conducted, despite our consistently strong performances on the debate stage. The mayor of Hamilton cannot be filled by a current Councillor but by an "outsider".