Māori Party co-leader John Tamihere will "lead the rearguards" in support of his party candidates, he told MagicTalk on Sunday.
While co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer was ranked first on the list of candidates released on Friday, Tamihere was ranked seventh - unusually low for a co-leader.
"A leader can honour others by not necessarily putting themselves upfront," Tamihere told MagicTalk.
"It takes a lot to put your name on the ballot… it takes courage," Tamihere said. "So I just wanted to honour them."
In a statement on Friday, Tamihere said listing himself at number seven was "the Māori thing to do".
Tamihere is running in Tāmaki Makaurau against Labour's Peeni Henare and the Greens' co-leader Marama Davidson. If Tamihere doesn't win Tāmaki Makaurau, he won't get to Parliament.
"All the Māori party is after is the candidate vote, and I'll be okay," Tamihere told MagicTalk.
The latest Newshub Reid-Research poll shows the Māori Party on 0.4 percent.
Tamihere says COVID-19 has made this election "tough".
"It becomes a very difficult election to get any oxygen as a third party."
The Māori Party failed to win any seats at the 2017 election on 1.18 percent of the overall vote.
The Māori Party list:
- Debbie Ngarewa-Packer
- Rawiri Waititi Waiariki
- Heather Te Au-Skipworth
- Tākuta Ferris
- Donna Pokere-Phillips
- Mariameno Kapa-Kingi
- John Tamihere
- Hana Tapiata
- Merepeka Raukawa-Tait
- Eru Kapa-Kingi
- Lady Tureiti Moxon
- Elijah Pue
- Dame R Naida Glavish
- Tumanako Silveira
- Taiaha Hawke
- Kate Cherrington
- Tina Porou
- Wendy Biddle
- Te Ropu Poa
- Fallyn Flavell
- Rangi McLean
