Reference articles on history, science, culture and more
Encyclopedia

Rodney ward

Ward of Auckland in New Zealand

Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

The Rodney ward is an electoral ward of Auckland Council The area primarily covers the former Rodney District; it does not include the Hibiscus Coast, which was also part of Rodney District but is now in Albany ward. The Rodney Local Board area has the same boundaries as Rodney Ward.

01Location

Rodney stretches from the spectacular black volcanic sand beaches of Muriwai in the west to the white sands and islands of the Kowhai Coast in the east. It includes a number of regional parks or areas of special interest. North of Orewa are the coastal Wenderholm, Mahurangi and Tawharanui Regional Parks. Cape Rodney-Okakari Point Marine Reserve, which surrounds Te Hāwere-a-Maki / Goat Island, was New Zealand's first marine reserve, officially opened in 1977. It covers a coastline of about 5 km (3 mi), extends out in sea by 800 m, and encompasses 5 km2 (2 sq mi), inside which all marine life is protected.

Population density in the 2023 census
Population density in the 2023 census

02Population

Rodney ward covers 2,275.00 km2 (878.38 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 83,400 as of June 2025, with a population density of 37 people per km2.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
200649,359,     
201354,882+1.53%
201866,417+3.89%
202377,949+3.25%
Source:

Rodney ward had a population of 77,949 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 11,532 people (17.4%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 23,067 people (42.0%) since the 2013 census. There were 38,826 males, 38,859 females and 261 people of other genders in 26,883 dwellings. 2.6% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 41.3 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 15,225 people (19.5%) aged under 15 years, 11,988 (15.4%) aged 15 to 29, 36,972 (47.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 13,764 (17.7%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 84.9% European (Pākehā); 12.2% Māori; 4.3% Pasifika; 9.4% Asian; 1.2% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.7% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.5%, Māori language by 1.8%, Samoan by 0.4%, and other languages by 12.8%. No language could be spoken by 2.1% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.3%. The percentage of people born overseas was 26.4, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 28.2% Christian, 1.5% Hindu, 0.5% Islam, 0.7% Māori religious beliefs, 0.7% Buddhist, 0.5% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.4% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 59.5%, and 7.2% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 15,705 (25.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 33,453 (53.3%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 13,569 (21.6%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $45,600, compared with $41,500 nationally. 10,539 people (16.8%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 32,595 (52.0%) people were employed full-time, 9,711 (15.5%) were part-time, and 1,272 (2.0%) were unemployed.

03Governance

Rodney ward councillors of Auckland
Incumbent
Greg Sayers
Term length
  • Three years
Inaugural holderPenny Webster
Formation1 November 2010
Websitewww.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

The Rodney ward is one of the 13 wards of Auckland Council and is governed by the Mayor of Auckland. It has one directly elected councillor who sits on the Auckland Council. The councillor has oversight over Rodney Local Board.

Election Councillor elected Affiliation Votes Notes
2010 Penny Webster Independent 8645
2013 Penny Webster Independent 8587
2016 Greg Sayers Independent 9252
2019 Greg Sayers Independent - Re-elected unopposed
2022 Greg Sayers Independent 13539
2025 Greg Sayers Independent elected unopposed

04Election results

Election results for the Rodney ward:

2025 election results

Rodney ward
Affiliation Candidate Votes
Independent Greg Sayers Unopposed
Registered 56,644
Independent hold
incumbent

2022 election results

Name Affiliation Votes
1 Greg Sayers Independent 13539
Beth Houlbrooke Rodney First 5850
Rob Ryan Independent 1447
Anne Perratt Independent 1109
Hannah North 1048
Blank 824
Informal 18

2016 election results

Name Affiliation Votes %
1 Greg Sayers Independent 9,252 47.1%
Penny Webster Independent 6,073 30.9%
Steven Garner Independent 1,898 9.7%
Holly Southernwood 1,342 6.8%
Blank 1,061 5.4%
Informal 22 0.1%
Turnout 19,648
Watch videos about Rodney wardExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Rodney ward, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.