Fourth-generation Hawke's Bay farmer Marcus Buddo is putting his hat in the ring to be mayor of Hastings District.

It's the first time the 30 year old Hastings District Councillor from Poukawa has entered the mayoral race, and he's launching his campaign in Havelock North on Saturday.

"I want to see people who wish to call Hawke's Bay home, afford to be able to live here. I want to see grandparents have the chance to see grandchildren grow up on their doorstep.

"I want our young people to see a future here," Buddo said.

The current mayor, Sandra Hazlehurst, has been in the role since 2017 and is yet to decide if she's seeking re-election for a fourth term.

"I will make my decision about whether I restand for the Hastings mayoralty in the middle of the year.

"I am very pleased to hear our Hastings District Councillors are putting themselves forward for election. Leadership succession planning in local government is really important to me and our council," Hazlehurst said.

Councillor Damon Harvey has signalled he is re-standing as a councillor, "while also strongly considering the mayoralty", but so far Buddo is the first to formally declare his intentions.

Cyclone Gabrielle cost Hawke's Bay Councils millions of dollars in damage and housing buy-outs. – RNZ / Alexa Cook

"While there's been kind of back channel talking that others might try, until nominations are in you don't really know," Buddo said.

"The reason I've come out now is I've been on council for three years and need an opportunity to talk to ratepayers about what I think we need to do as a district. It takes time to get that message out there, to let them understand who I am, what I'm about and that I really am the best man for the job."

It's a big job he's eyeing up too, with the region still recovering from the lingering challenges and costs of Cyclone Gabrielle, but Buddo told RNZ he was up for it.

"I'm running for mayor because I want to see a focus on reducing rates and debt, rebuilding after the cyclone, housing affordability and to support economic productivity," he said.

Buddo said the council currently has about $410 million in debt today, and it's expected to increase to around $700 million by 2030. Which will mean each rating unit will be paying about $1000 in interest costs.

"We need to do all we can to change this. We've taken on the debt for good reason, to rebuild after the cyclone, but I think we can do more to find things that council doesn't need to be doing and could be delivered differently. We need to show ratepayers we are completely serious about reducing the burden on them.

"As a councillor I have kept the ratepayers front of mind in every decision I've made, and that shows in my voting record... making sure that we keep ratepayers first over the interests of special interest groups," he said.

Buddo is confident his degrees in economics, public health and politics, plus three years as councillor, and a rural upbringing, have set him up well for this task.

"These are all things I bring to the table. I have some serious experience," Buddo said.

His family has been farming the same property in Poukawa for nearly 120 years.

"It's a wonderful place to grow up and get to know the value of hard work, and see how important it is to manage your costs to get through difficult times like droughts," he said.

The region suffered a persistent and severe drought in 2019 and 2020, while he was managing the farm.

"It was incredibly tough, but we got through it by managing our budget really tightly, cutting unnecessary costs, and moving forward," he said.

Hastings District Council election timeline

• 1 July: Candidate nominations open and the roll opens for public inspection
• 1 August, at 12 noon: Candidate nominations close and roll closes
• 6 August: Public notice of candidates' names
• 9-22 September: Voting documents delivered
• 7 October: Last day for posting votes by mail. After this date, votes must be returned to council's secure ballot boxes
• 11 October, at 12 noon: Election day - voting closes midday
• 11 October, from 12 noon: Preliminary results
• 16 - 22 October: Declaration of results
• October/ November 2025: Elected members' swearing-in ceremonies.