Local council is often the first place where tangata whenua have to engage with the Crown, but Māori have long been under-represented in local government.
Despite being 14 percent of the population, only 5 percent of elected local body members identify as Māori.
But could that situation be starting to change?
Local body and DHB elections were held last weekend, with a number of Māori being elected up and down the country.
Among them are Toi Iti, who has been elected to the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Tamatha Paul who has been elected to the Wellington City Council and Moko Tepania, who was elected to the Far-North District Council.
The spoke to The Hui about the priority issues in their regions.
Watch the video.
