Chris Carter (politician)
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Parl. | Electorate | List Pos. | Party |
44th | Te Atatu | n/a | Labour |
46th | Te Atatu | 34 | Labour |
47th | Te Atatu | 25 | Labour |
48th | Te Atatu | 19 | Labour |
Christopher Joseph Carter is a New Zealand politician and a member of Cabinet. He currently serves as Minister of Conservation, Minister of Housing, and Minister of Ethnic Affairs. He is the member of parliament for the Te Atatu electorate, where he was first elected in 1993. He did not win re-election in 1996, but won an expanded seat in 1999.
He was born in 1952 and brought up in the Auckland suburb of Panmure. He was educated at St Peter's College, Auckland and at the University of Auckland (MA(Hons) History.
He was notable in for being the first openly gay man ever appointed as a New Zealand cabinet minister. He has been a strong advocate of gay rights for some time, and has continued this role since entering parliament. Before entering politics, Carter had served as a teacher and as a poultry farmer. His partner is Peter Kaiser, they have been together for over 30 years.
At the 2005 general election, Carter was re-elected with 59.2% of the vote, a majority of 9,165.