Remember Aaron Gilmore? Well his time in the political wilderness could be about to end - at least, if his latest blog post is anything to go by.
Gilmore discussed Labour MP Lianne Dalziel putting her hand up to contest the Christchurch mayoralty forcing a Christchurch East by election.
Near the end of the blog post, he seems to suggest he too may throw his name in the ring for the seat.
"Many locals have asked what am I going to do as part of this. The answer to that is simple. The by-election is not likely till after show week. So good things come to those who wait."
Gilmore says his rather coy attitude comes from lessons learned through his abrupt resignation from Parliament in early May.
"I have learnt to hold my cards very closely. Bottom line, I do not want to see Labour hold onto the seat, as I do not think that is the best thing for the people."
Mr Gilmore running for the by election is an idea Prime Minister John Key finds somewhat laughable.
Asked in his post-Cabinet press conference today whether he would be happy for Mr Gilmore to be back in his caucus, Mr Key smirked.
"By my understanding he was thinking about doing that as an independent. By definition, that means he's not part of our caucus.
"I don't think it's likely he'll win."
In his blog post Mr Gilmore compares his family to Ms Dalziel's: "My family would be described as working class. Lianne came from multiple generations of tertiary educated people, with two very smart successful siblings."
He also discusses whether the electorate would still be considered a safe Labour seat.
"Well it is not."
He believes the make-up of the Christchurch East electorate has changed since the earthquakes.
A date for the by-election has not been set, but is likely to take place before the end of the year.
3 News
source: newshub archive
